


The Sun, the Moon, and You

by MadamBiscuit



Series: Worthy [3]
Category: Dragon Ball
Genre: Angst, M/M, Romance, VegeZama, VegettoxZamasu, VegitoxZamasu, Yaoi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-06
Updated: 2020-07-06
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:33:27
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 35,008
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25100950
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MadamBiscuit/pseuds/MadamBiscuit
Summary: Vegetto finally returns to the future timeline after more than a year has passed.  He made a wish on the Super Dragon Balls, but was their wish granted as they had hoped?  Would they finally have the future they longed for?  (Sequel to "Imperfect Utopia") (Vegetto x Zamasu)
Relationships: Vegetto/Zamasu, Vegito/Zamasu (Dragon Ball)
Series: Worthy [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1567648
Comments: 8
Kudos: 41





	The Sun, the Moon, and You

**Author's Note:**

> This story is part 3 of a series. Part 1 is “Another Form of Defeat”. Part 2 is “Imperfect Utopia”. If you have not yet read those, go read them and then come back to this one.

Trunks had been absolutely devastated when Vegeta broke the news about his timeline. Zamasu had killed every last human alive in their absence. They had lost. His fight against the androids, his defeat of Cell . . . all of it had been for naught. His struggle, his losses, all the tears he shed and all the steps he had taken to become more powerful were all in vain. Vegeta himself looked on the verge of tears just watching him break down in the arms of his girlfriend, Mai. She, too, was openly sobbing as the two of them held onto each other. They were the only survivors and would no doubt feel guilt for that. 

Goku watched the scene unfold, a solemn expression on his face as he sat a short distance away. What could he possibly say to console Trunks? They had promised to save his people and restore order to his timeline, but instead they . . .

The Saiyan grit his teeth, overcome with a sudden powerful urge to punch something. How could he have felt so bad for Zamasu when that god was the cause of all of this? He had killed Goten and Chichi and Bulma . . . and everyone. Everyone was gone from that timeline. Not just their own planet or even their own universe.

 _Everyone_ was gone.

Goku stood and ran a hand over his face, his own conscience now full of guilt for those who were lost and for what Vegetto had done. How could he betray them that way and why did he still feel a strong desire to return to that place? He held two fingers to his forehead with intent to instant transmission where Piccolo was. Perhaps sparring with him for a bit would make him feel better.

“Kakarot!” Vegeta’s stern voice rang through the air as the Saiyan prince caught the other man trying to sneak away, “Where are you going?”

“I . . . I need to train or something. I don’t know what I need to do.” He honestly felt horribly confused by these feelings of hopelessness and failure. In the past they had always been able to pull through no matter how horribly bleak things had seemed. That fight with Buu had truly seemed like the end of days, and yet look how that turned out! This time, though . . .

“It isn’t your fault, Kakarot.”

“Huh?” Goku slowly lowered the hand he was going to use to teleport himself. “What do you mean?”

“You’re blaming yourself for what happened, right?” Vegeta’s normally angry expression was softer now as he approached the other Saiyan. He lowered his voice so as not to disrupt the mourning of Trunks and Mai. “I . . . I feel guilty as well. We were unable to protect his timeline and the people in it. We failed. It’s not the first failure of my life, that’s for certain.” He pursed his lips as he remembered that fateful day he tried to destroy the planet on which he now resided. “We did what we could. The person we were up against was immortal and a potara fusion. Our own fusion refused to fight him. What could we have possibly done?” Vegeta curled his hands into fists, “I want to be angry with myself, trust me. But . . . the truth is, what could we have done differently? We just weren’t strong enough. I don’t even know if our bodies are capable of reaching such a height.”

“But Vegetto is us, so-“

“No! That bastard . . . he has a will of his own. We can’t be at fault for his mistakes. I never want to fuse again, Kakarot. He is no good. He helped tremendously in our fight against Buu, but . . . if he had just fought Zamasu when we first fused, maybe he could have defeated him and we could have saved the last bit of humanity.” His anger toward Vegetto was overwhelming, but it wasn’t like he could fight him to get that anger out. 

“We . . . can’t be held accountable for what our fusion does . . .” Goku repeated the words slowly, the wheels turning in his mind as he mulled it over.

“Right.”

“Vegetto has a will of his own . . .”

“Why are you just repeating what I said?” Vegeta folded his arms across his chest, arching a brow in irritation. 

“If Vegetto is his own person, then wouldn’t the Fused Zamasu be different from Zamasu and Black?” Goku scrunched up his face as he tried to piece it all together. He hadn’t really considered that a fusion was essentially a separate life force.

“They were all Zamasu, so Zamasu plus Zamasu is still Zamasu, isn’t it?” Vegeta tapped his foot, “What are you trying to get at by asking that? You’re not still feeling bad for him, are you!? Just because that form was not the one that killed most of civilization, doesn’t mean he is not to blame!”

“But you just said-“

“Not another word! I swear, you’re the biggest idiot I’ve ever had the misfortune of meeting.” Huffing, Vegeta turned and went back to the others. Talking to Kakarot would only annoy him right now.

Goku pursed his lips. He understood why Vegeta was upset; he was also incredibly disappointed in the result and carried that same guilt. Though . . . what Vegeta had said was right – what more could they have done? Vegetto was their trump card! He was the one person powerful enough to stand up against Zamasu’s potara fusion! But . . . he didn’t fight him at all. Instead, he formed a relationship with Zamasu and . . . Zamasu seemed really kind to him. Zamasu really wanted to be with him and Vegetto wanted the same.

Something about remembering that farewell made Goku’s chest ache and he instinctively gripped at his chest before flying off in a hurry. He didn’t want to really be around anyone at the moment – no, wait. He needed to talk to Whis! If they could find a way to separate Vegetto from them, then he wouldn’t have this lingering feeling that he’d lied to Zamasu. No matter how awful Zamasu and Goku Black had been, they couldn’t blame the Fusion for that, right? Though . . . he seemed really evil himself. “It’s all so confusing!” Goku pulled at his hair mid-flight. No matter how awful, he couldn’t just leave things as they were. It would eat at him for the rest of his days if he did.

* * *

“Separate a fusion?” Whis dabbed at the corners of his lips with a napkin, having downed the large slice of cake Goku had brought him as a bribe. “You mean that you want to give Vegetto his own body?” The angel cocked a brow. Of all the questions he could have asked, he’d never have guessed that would be it. Why did he want to separate him?

“Yes! Do you know of a way to do that?” Goku held his hands together in a prayer position, his brows turned upward as he looked Whis dead in the eyes.

“My, my, you really are quite serious today, aren’t you?” Whis studied the Saiyan’s face for a moment. He knew they had been going to that future timeline in an attempt to save it and he had been nosey enough that he knew they had failed. Was this somehow related to all of that?

“Alright Goku, spill. What are you up to?” Beerus sat close by on the grass, his legs crossed as he leaned with an elbow on his knee. His tail swished slowly from side to side as his eyes narrowed sharply at their visitor, “Why would you want to give life to a fusion? There’s no reason to do that.”

The Saiyan laughed nervously, rubbing at the back of his head before taking a seat on the ground across from Beerus. He sat in a similar fashion, but bowed his head. This behavior was incredibly unusual for Goku, who was typically very informal with them. “I . . . he wants to be his own person!”

Beerus stared at the top of Goku’s head as the man remained in a bowing position with his hands on the grass in front of him. He then looked to Whis, who was now approaching the two. “What do you mean? When did he say this? It’s not like he could have had a conversation with you or Vegeta.” There was something more to all of this and Goku didn’t want to tell them. They saw past the charade, though.

“He said it while he was fused in that future timeline.” Goku slowly leaned back up into a proper sitting position, “We have memory of what he did and said while we were-“

“Who did he say that to?” Whis stood beside the two of them, a skeptical look on his face that mirrored the expression of Beerus.

“He . . . he just said it to himself-“

“Who?” Whis’ eyes narrowed a bit.

“. . .” Goku pursed his lips, his own gaze falling to the ground in front of them. If they knew it was for Zamasu, there was absolutely no way they would help him! Zamasu was the enemy! How could he possibly explain this gut feeling to them!?

“He said it to the god of Universe 10, Zamasu, did he not?” Whis smirked when Goku suddenly looked at him, his eyes wide. “You should not lie to us, Goku.”

“Ah . . . I’m sorry. I just thought that if I told you-“

“No way!” Beerus got to his feet, his hands curled into fists, “If it’s to do any kind of good for that wayward god, I won’t have any part in it!”

“But Beerus-“

“But _nothing_. I go along with a lot of your ideas because I find them interesting and I love to be entertained. This, however . . . I cannot back this up. The Zamasu of this timeline was erased by my very own hand. Why would I allow you to help a Zamasu who is exponentially more powerful than that one? Beerus’s expression was unusually serious. He wasn’t playing around this time.

“I . . . but I think-“

“I said no!”

“Beerus.” Whis’s voice was stern as he shot the god of destruction a look. He then offered a smile, “Why don’t you let Goku explain why it is he wants to separate him? Goku has worked many miracles that surprised us both. I think the least we can do is hear him out. Isn’t that fair?” Though he was smiling, it was that sort of fake smile that seemed more threatening than kind.

The god cleared his throat and sighed, flopping unceremoniously back onto the ground. “Alright, alright. Let’s hear it, then. Why do you want to separate Vegetto?”

Goku explained what had happened during the two encounters between Vegetto and Zamasu. He explained, as best he could, how their interaction developed and how the two had parted ways . The passionate sex, the romantic language, the tearful goodbye . . . and the promise he’d made to Zamasu to try and bring Vegetto back to him forever. Even just explaining it, the Saiyan felt a tightness in his throat and chest as if those feelings were his own, though he knew they were not. He should feel only anger at Zamasu for what he had done, yet . . . he felt this longing to see him again instead. Those were Vegetto’s own feelings buried inside of him, weren’t they?

Sometime during all of that storytelling, Whis had sat down to the side of them both. “That is . . . all very difficult to believe, yet I could tell you were not lying.” Goku was a terrible liar – his face and actions always betrayed him. This time, however, he could tell by his body language and by the – sometimes vulgar – details that it must be the truth. 

“A psychotic god who hates mortals enough that he would decimate them . . . fell for a mortal who showed up originally intending to kill him.” Beerus rubbed at his forehead. 

“It’s very intriguing.” Whis tilted his head, “I cannot help but wonder if it would actually be beneficial for him to be in a relationship with Vegetto. After all, if he is attached to him, then perhaps he would assist our universe if we should ever need it. As much as you are against it, Lord Beerus, you must admit that adding the fusion warrior Vegetto and the fusion, immortal god Zamasu to our arsenal could make our universe soar in the ranks in terms of power.” The corner of the angel’s mouth tugged upward into a smirk. He knew the best means of convincing Beerus was to bring up universe 7’s standing amongst the other universes.

“I think he realizes that the world he created is really lonely and awful.” Goku frowned, but his heart was beating rapidly with excitement. Whis seemed to be on board with the idea and Beerus did seem to be warming up to it a bit, but . . . that didn’t answer his initial question. “So . . . is there a way to do that? Is there a way to give Vegetto his own body? A _permanent_ body?”

“Hmmm, that is a question I cannot answer. Not because the answer is forbidden, but because I do not know of any time in history where anyone has made an attempt.” Whis rubbed at his chin and closed his eyes, searching through his memory. “It is odd that Vegetto went against your wishes to begin with. For him to do such . . . _activities_ . . . with someone who his two parts despised is extraordinarily unusual. Then again, the same is true for Zamasu.” It was all quite mysterious, though mysteries seemed to love finding their way to Goku, didn’t they?

Beerus hummed a bit, “I think the only things that could grant a wish like that would be either the Super Dragon Balls or the Omni King himself . . . and I do not recommend asking the Omni King; he would probably just destroy the whole timeline rather than help you once he found out what Zamasu did.” Or he would just do it out of fun. The Omni King was childish and moody – though Beerus knew better than to say something like that out loud.

“The Super Dragon Balls . . .” Goku had only seen them once. Had they reset yet?

“Hm, those just might have the power to do it, though it may be a bit of a stretch. At the very least, perhaps the dragon has the power to lengthen the timer on the fusion. It would be better than nothing. Gathering them is no easy feat, though.”

“I’ll do it. I promised him I would.” Goku finally got to his feet, brushing the bits of grass off his legs and his behind. “I really hope we can separate him. A longer fusion would be nice, but convincing Vegeta to visit Zamasu every now and then would be impossible.” Why was he so dead-set on this? Why had he made that promise? He really didn’t even understand it himself. He just had to assume these were Vegetto’s feelings pouring out through him. Didn’t Vegeta feel anything at all about it? Vegetto was part of Vegeta too, after all. “Just tell me what I need to do to collect them.”

* * *

Zamasu sat with his back against a tree. He was seated in the dirt, a forest stretched all around him as far as the eye could see. His clothes would be filthy once he got back up, but what did it matter? He could clean them. Who would be around to see him in such disarray, anyhow? Sometimes he found himself returning home with his hair a mess, his clothes torn, disheveled, or sometimes pieces missing . . . but it didn’t matter.

This world was flourishing. The animals were in abundance and the vegetation was thriving. The flowers had even begun to spring up in places he didn’t think they could grow.

He had destroyed the vast majority of the man-made structures and rubble that had been left behind, but he decided to leave some of the walking paths and plazas and watched as nature took over them. It was a beautiful reminder of what once was. The mortals who thought they stood atop their universes were all crushed beneath his mighty hand. They were no more and they never would be again.

But now what?

He ought to marvel at this beautiful cosmos he created, and yet all he could do was lament as each day came to a close and he was still alone. What of that promise from Vegetto? What of that promise from Son Goku? He had believed him the first time and Vegetto had returned. Though . . . that was all by chance, was it not?

“I was wrong to believe them.” He clenched his teeth, leaning forward a bit before quickly slamming the back of his head against the tree behind him. He repeated this motion, again and again and again . . . but it did nothing. It felt only a bit strange and nothing more. There would be no blood, no scar, no bruising. Nothing in this world made him feel anything . . . but the pain left in his heart was excruciating. There was nothing he could feel to distract him from that feeling. He had done everything he could think of. 

“I trusted in mortals . . . and now look what I’ve got?” Tears slipped freely down his cheeks, for who was there to see him and mock him for it? Again, there was no one. Nature was a silent queen and she neither judged nor consoled him. “I am the god of all that is and I should be happy for it. These worlds are all very beautiful, but I’ve allowed my heart to get distracted.” He could not truly appreciate that beauty when his own desires and loneliness and heartache were deafening.

Zamasu’s hand came to rest over the blue sash around his waist. His fingers ghosted over the ripples in the fabric that he’d come to know so well. He wore it all day and all night. Even when he removed his coat, the sash was re-tied around his waist. In the beginning it had Vegetto’s scent and it provided at least a small amount of comfort in his absence. Now, though . . . now it had been washed by hand too many times (he couldn’t leave it a mess, after all) and it was only a reminder of that fleeting romance.

Wiping the tears from his face, Zamasu stood and dusted off his backside before trudging back toward the cabin. 

How long had it been since Goku and Vegeta took off in the time machine? He had counted at first, but stopped quite some time ago. It had been 30 days, then 60, then 100, then 200 and finally he had to resign himself to the truth that . . .

. . . Vegetto was never coming back.

And yet still, in the back of his mind, he held onto that hope. He couldn’t even bring himself to leave this planet because what if Vegetto did return and he was gone? What if he missed his opportunity to see him? He couldn’t bear the thought and so he remained here, in the same cabin as he had been in.

“You are a damned fool, Zamasu.” When had he lost his dignity and sense of superiority? Why was he allowing a mere mortal to have such a tight grasp on his heart and his choices? He ought to do what he had set out to do from the beginning! He needed to rid the other planets of their mortal structures to aid nature in its resurgence. 

But yet, he stayed.

Hundreds of days was such a short amount of time for a god who naturally lived for millions of years. For he whose heart was aching, however, those hundreds of days had felt like an agonizing eternity.

“Hm? The sun is up?” It had been difficult to see it in that dense forest, but as he emerged from among the trees, he could see the sun was already well on its way toward the highest point in the sky. “I thought it was night . . .” He only thought on it for a moment before simply huffing and continuing on his way. Day, night, what did any of it matter? There was no correct or incorrect way for him to live. As long as he stayed on this planet, he would know if Vegetto – or anyone – came to this world. He would sense their presence.

Though even his own senses had begun to betray him. Countless times now, he thought he had sensed the presence of Vegetto. He would hurry to that location, only to find there was nothing. As much as he did not want to admit it, he truly felt that this desperate loneliness was quickly driving him insane.

“Heh . . .ha ha . . . hahahaha!” He threw his head back and laughed as he suddenly sensed Vegetto’s presence as if on cue. “Leave me alone!” He screamed out the words, “Leave me alone!” It hurt. He wanted to laugh about the chaos of it all, but just as much as he wanted to laugh he also wanted to cry. Cry, scream, laugh . . . and so he did it all at once. He laughed at his own misfortune – he cried for it as well. And as tears streamed down his face, he screamed out to no one ‘leave me alone’.

This was not the first time this had happened and it was surely quite far from the last time. When would it fade? When would he forget the Saiyan he’d grown to love? When would he forget the lies and the betrayal?

. . . when would the pain stop so he could finally move on from this place?

“What am I doing?” He found himself asking that more often than not. Since when had he lost all composure? Why was he allowing for these ungodly feelings to disrupt the plans he’d had for his utopia? “My perfect utopia . . .” Again he laughed, “My _im_ perfect utopia.” There was so much work yet to be done and yet he could not free himself of the emotional chains that bound him to this one planet in this one universe.

How long had it been since he had slept? Even when he felt exhausted to the point of collapse, his sleep was always restless and he woke feeling not much better than before. “I should rest. Maybe I should make myself some tea to relax.” 

* * *

The moment he landed on the desolate Earth, Vegetto could feel his heart pounding with excitement, but also with uncertainty. It had been quite a long while since he had been here and he wasn’t sure just how Zamasu would react. Kakarot had not been able to collect the Super Dragon balls for quite some time as they had just been used not long before and a year had to pass before they could be collected again.

More than a year . . .

He was worried that Zamasu would have left Earth, assuming the Saiyan had lied to him. There was no way for him to sense the god, either, as he was unable to sense god ki. “Hopefully he’s still here. I guess I could check the cabin and see if he’s there or if he’s been there recently.” The fusion took a deep breath and then exhaled slowly as he returned the time machine to its capsule and then headed toward his destination on foot. “Ah shit, I should have masked my presence.” He masked himself now, but there was always a chance Zamasu had already sensed him. “I want it to be a surprise when I show up.”

Vegetto had the reunion all planned out in his head already, but knew something was likely to go differently than he hoped for. “I probably should have come up with some kind of apology for when I first see him. He’s definitely going to be angry with me.” He had been angry last time when he’d only been gone for a couple weeks. 

And then there was the worst of the thoughts in the back of his mind. What if Zamasu was still here on Earth, but had spiraled into madness? When he had returned last time, Zamasu seemed quite a bit more deranged than he had the first time. Was his mind slowly decaying just as his body had before? Would Zamasu even recognize who he was or remember what they had? There was really no use in speculating, though. He was here now and he would hopefully find out the truth of the situation soon enough.

It wasn’t long before he reached the edge of the forest nearby the cabin. Much like before, the silence in the world was disturbing, but at least he could hear the sound of birds. So he hadn’t killed the animals, then? He hadn’t really thought about it before. “Please be in the cabin . . .” Maybe he was still asleep inside? It looked pretty early in the morning, judging by the position of the sun.

As he was about to approach the building, the sound of strange laughter found its way to his ears. “Is that . . .” Vegetto scanned the exterior of the cabin and the surrounding area, his eyes finally coming to rest on the terrace outside. “Zamasu . . .” He felt his heart skip a beat when he finally caught sight of him. Zamasu was still here on Earth. Zamasu was still at the cabin after all and he looked just as he had before, from what he could see at this distance anyway.

What was he laughing about, though?

Zamasu stirred at his tea a bit. He’d been able to find a great many tea leaves in the human shops that remained before he destroyed them, but even those would run out someday. It was a luxury that would disappear like many other things he enjoyed. It was all hysterical, wasn’t it? The sensation of Vegetto’s ki he’d felt just a bit ago had also disappeared, just as it always did. Was it worth it? Was it worth it to live with this eternal agony for the sake of the cosmos?

This was his intention all along, was it not? He would take the sin and the suffering from the many worlds all unto himself so that they may continue on in peace forever. “The ends justify the means . . . I’ve said so all along, have I not?” Again he laughed before downing the remaining bit of his beverage.

“Are you having fun without me, Zamasu?”

The god froze, his hands still clutching his teacup as his eyes widened significantly.

There had been many, many times where he thought he felt Vegetto’s presence. There had been fewer times when he had thought he heard Vegetto’s voice. But even during those times, never before had it been as clear as it was just now. “Ahhhh . . . I’m really going crazy, aren’t I?” His voice shook a bit, as did his hands, and he was afraid to look away from his cup. He could feel him again. He could sense his presence in the same direction from which he heard his voice. There was no way. After all this time? No, it couldn’t be . . . he wasn’t coming back.

“Are you? I don’t think you’re crazy.” Vegetto stood on the terrace, his back leaned against the railing as he watched Zamasu. Zamasu did not look at him. He thought he was hearing things, didn’t he? Vegetto had even unmasked his ki, so surely Zamasu could sense him as well, could he not? “Look at me, Zamasu.” His own heart was pounding like crazy. This was really happening, wasn’t it? He was really here again, right? He had to be. While it had felt like only a short time since he’d seen Zamasu, he knew from the memories of both Kakarot and Vegeta just how long it had been. But . . . Zamasu was here and Zamasu remembered him.

This was different. This was not like the other times at all. Dare he believe that Vegetto had actually come back? It felt like someone had reached into his chest and grabbed hold of his heart, squeezing it and trying to tear it apart. “Vege . . . tto . . .” 

Slowly, the god turned his head to look at the Saiyan fusion, his eyes growing wider still as they remained yet unblinking. “Ve . . . Vege . . . tto . . .” That handsome face, that sweet smile . . . no! He had seen this before! “No . . .”

“What? No?” Vegetto leaned away from the railing, staring right into those wide, silver eyes. “What are you-“

“These visions again . . . why do they haunt me?”

“W-what?”

“I must have fallen asleep at the table again. This isn’t real. I need to wake up.”

“Hey, you aren’t-“

“I don’t want to see him. I don’t want to see him . . . **_I don’t want to see him!!_** ” The cup in the Kaioshin’s grasp shattered as he suddenly tightened his grip, immediately cutting into his palms and fingers. “I don’t . . . I don’t want . . . no more . . . leave me alone!” 

While the words made Vegetto’s chest tighten considerably, he lunged at Zamasu the moment he saw him pick up a shard of the cup and bring it toward his own eyes. “Zamasu! Stop! I’m really here!” He grabbed his arms and pulled them away from his face just in time that he wasn’t able to gouge his eyes out – or, at least that is was Vegetto assumed he was trying to do. Even if they would just heal, he couldn’t let the god do something so gruesome to himself. “Look at me!” He held the Kai by his shoulders, shaking him, “Snap out of it! I know . . . I know it has been a long time, but I’m here now! I . . . I’m here!” It had been too long, but there wasn’t much Kakarot could have done about the time constraints on the Super Dragon Balls.

Vegetto was touching him, shaking him, yelling at him . . . “You are . . . here?” He could feel the backs of his eyes burning as he struggled to speak over the lump that had formed in his throat.

“Yeah . . . I’m here.” Vegetto’s voice was just above a whisper now as his own emotion threatened to spill over. He did not have to wait as Zamasu had, but just seeing how Zamasu reacted to him broke his heart.

He was here. He was here after such a long while and he was speaking to him as though he’d just run off for an hour or so and returned. “Heh . . . hahaha. . . ahahaha. . .” As fresh tears slipped down the god’s cheeks, he laughed just as he had become accustomed to. “You are here?” He laughed again, this time his whole body shaking as it was wracked with laughter.

Vegetto maintained his hold on Zamasu’s shoulders, but his brows furrowed with confusion. Why was he laughing? Did he still not actually believe it? “Why . . . why is that funny?”

“After all this time . . . you expect me to believe it? What trick is this?” The laughing had stopped and now Zamasu’s face was twisted with anger as he picked up another shard of the cup and swung at his lover’s face. Vegetto pulled back, but not before the very edge of the porcelain caught his cheek, leaving a short, thin cut in its wake.

“Shit! What the hell is going on!? Do . . . do you really not want me here!?” It felt difficult to breathe. After all of that, did Zamasu really want him to go? Did he really not want him? “Have I . . . have I lost you?” He tried his best to keep it together. Never before had he felt so crushed. He’d not lived long enough in the world to experience a pain like rejection.

Zamasu’s breath hitched in his throat as Vegetto yelled at him. He watched as a small bit of blood dripped from the wound on his cheek and slid down his skin to his jawline. He had cut him. So then . . . he really, truly was standing here? He had actually returned? After all this time . . .

“Vegetto . . .” He stood from his seat, stumbling a bit as he reached out toward his lover. His silver eyes were still wide and unblinking as he made his way toward what he had thought was an illusion, “You are . . . I . . .I thought . . . I . . .” He tried to form an apology or any sentence at all, really, but the words refused to come out. Every thought in his mind was swimming in a circle and drowning before it could leave him. 

Zamasu had been left alone for far too long and was in danger of losing the last bit of his mind. Vegetto knew his mind was fragile from the very beginning, but it was clear now just how fragile it really was. He’d underestimated that quite a bit. “It’s okay. I know. You still want me, right?” He offered him a smile as he reached up to touch at the light wound on his face. “It’s just a little scratch – it’s no big deal.”

He was back. Could it really be true? It had to be, didn’t it? All of this was far too vivid and lacked the illogical progression of his usual dreams and hallucinations, “You’re really here? Right in front of me . . . Vegetto is here.”

“Yeah, I’m here.” Vegetto took a few steps forward again as Zamasu fell back into his seat with far less grace than he had in the past. This guy . . . he was an absolute mess.

“Vegetto . . . if this is a dream, let me not wake from it.” A mortal. A filthy, smug, bastard of a mortal and he was overcome with emotion at his return. This mortal who had cost him countless nights of sleep as he either tossed and turned with insomnia or woke in distress because he dreamt sweet dreams of him and woke up without. 

“It’s not a dream. I’m really here.” Vegetto knelt down beside Zamasu’s seat, holding the god’s hands in his own. Though the wounds from the cup had healed themselves quickly, he could feel the stickiness of the blood that remained on his palms. “I’m here now.”

“I waited for a long time, Vegetto.” Zamasu stared down at him, blinking slowly now as his mind struggled to decide if this was a dream or reality.

“I know. I’m sorry.”

“Hundreds of days . . . I think. I don’t know; I stopped counting quite some time ago.”

“I know.” Vegetto brought his lover’s hands to his lips and kissed each knuckle.

“I didn’t leave this planet even once for fear that you might return while I was gone. I didn’t want to miss you. I didn’t want you to think . . . to think that I wasn’t waiting.” His voice wavered as another wave of tears slipped down his cheeks.

He had waited. All this time he had hung around Earth all alone, waiting for someone who may never return, “How long were you going to wait?” He wanted to hold him, but was it okay? Did he hate him?

“I . . . don’t know. I . . . are you really here?” How many times now had he asked that question? His mind just could not wrap around a reality in which Vegetto had finally returned to him. If he was really here, why wasn’t he holding him tightly or kissing him? He felt so damn pathetic for wanting such things, but yet he would not fight them one bit. Who was there to judge him now? He had been deprived of that affection that had warmed his very soul for entirely too long.

“I’m really here, Zamasu.” Vegetto released his hold on his lover’s hands and slowly rose to his feet, holding his arms out to him instead, “I’m sorry it took so long, but I’m here.”

Zamasu tried to stand again, but clumsily fell against Vegetto, desperately clinging to his clothes. Vegetto helped him regain his balance, two large and powerful hands holding tightly to him before the Saiyan’s arms wrapped around him in an embrace. 

It was overwhelming. He came back. It took a long time, but he really did come back. “Vegetto! Vegetto! I hate it . . . why am I crying over a damned mortal! You’re the worst! I should rip you into a million pieces!” The god sounded furious, but his actions betrayed his true feelings. Tears poured more freely from his eyes now as he clung to the fusion with what strength he had left in him. “I only wanted to see you again – I could not think of much else.”

Vegetto squeezed his lover tightly before taking the god’s seat with Zamasu now straddling his lap so he could hold him against him still. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry that it took such a long time, but. . . I’m here now, right?” He rubbed circles on the god’s back and rubbed his unwounded cheek against the cheek of Zamasu. He understood a bit of why Zamasu kept asking if he was real. Even he felt that this was some kind of dream or hallucination, though he’d never actually experienced either of those things. Zamasu apparently frequently had them.

“You are here . . . but for how long?” Zamasu pulled back from him and wiped at his eyes, trying his best to regain his composure. All he wanted to do was to hold tightly to Vegetto and never let go. He still held on to the thought that this could be a dream or a very vivid hallucination, but he allowed himself the pleasure of it anyhow. If he could not be happy in reality, why not embrace the warmth of fantasy while he had it?

“How long? Ah, that’s . . .” His eyes fell away from Zamasu’s face, instead coming to rest on the blue sash around the god’s waist. He was wearing his sash from before? He really kept it all this time . . .

“It isn’t forever . . .” Zamasu barely got the words out as his chest tightened in response. It wasn’t forever. He couldn’t make the wish, could he? It was impossible to separate a fusion, wasn’t it?

“It . . . it’s not . . . but! But I did collect the Super Dragon Balls! Or, well . . . Kakarot collected them! That’s why it took so long for me to come back here. He had to wait for the cool-down to end from their last use.” He could see the devastation on Zamasu’s face the more he spoke, “Woah, hey, don’t be upset! Instead of just one hour, we get _three_!” He offered the Kai a grin, but it did nothing to console him.

“What is three hours when compared to eternity?” So he would leave again? Yes . . . yes he would. He would leave him again and for how long this time? “I cannot do this. If you really are here and are not a creation of my dreams, then . . . then leave now and never come back.” He wanted him to stay. “I cannot waste any more emotion on you.” He wanted him forever. “I waited for so long for a mortal who is temporary.” He wanted him for any amount of time that he could have him. “I am above this . . . when did I become so horribly pathetic?”

“You don’t mean that.” Vegetto pulled the god into his chest once more, his hand holding the back of his head to keep him from pulling away, “You don’t . . . you don’t mean that at all, do you? I’m here now. Kakarot and Vegeta even made an agreement to come see you once every month.” Would Zamasu really rather never see him again than see him only periodically? 

“No. I don’t want that. I want . . . I want you to stay forever.”

“Zamasu, even if I had a body of my own, I wouldn’t want to stay in a place like this forever.” He could feel the Kai’s body stiffen against him from his words. Surely he didn’t think he’d want to stay in an empty, desolate world like this! What normal person would want that? Even Zamasu himself was being driven to the point of insanity from his loneliness.

“So then . . . I waited for nothing. From the beginning, you never had any intentions of staying with me.” Now he hoped this was all a nightmare. Those weren’t the words he had longed to hear. He wanted Vegetto to come back and tell him he was there forever. He kept saying he wanted more time, he wanted more time . . . was three hours really what he meant? And how long was a month? How many day/night cycles would that be? “I can’t wait anymore, Vegetto. I can’t . . .”

“Zamasu, this place is horrible for your mind. You didn’t wait for nothing. I came back just like I promised. Maybe it isn’t quite what you wanted, but we can spend more time together than before. Like right now . . . right now I can hold you against me and just feel the beating of your heart. Isn’t that nice?” He entangled his fingers in the god’s soft, white hair. It was nice to just feel his warmth against him. 

Perhaps . . . perhaps the plan he’d worked up for their reunion wasn’t a very good plan after all? He was saving a surprise for later, but . . .

“It isn’t enough!” The god managed to pry himself away from Vegetto so he could look him in the eyes. He was so used to seeing blue hair and blue eyes on the Saiyan, but now they were both a dark brown. He hated that appearance; it reminded him too much of how Vegetto looked right before he had to leave him again. “It isn’t enough. I want you always. You are . . . you are mine.” He was an all-powerful god, so why could he not keep him forever? He could keep them here and make them fuse again and again and again . . .

“Zamasu, I know it isn’t quite what you wanted, but-“

“The time machine.”

“Huh?”

“Where is the time machine?” Zamasu’s eyes looked dull as he stared intensely into the Saiyan’s eyes. His hands now gripped the man’s shoulders tightly as he waited for an answer, “Is it in a capsule again?”

“. . . why do you want to know something like that?” Vegetto pursed his lips, his brows furrowing in suspicion. Zamasu was saying crazy and unpredictable things. He was just distressed, right? That was all he could hope for, anyhow. What could he do to calm him and put him at ease? Would he really need to ruin his surprise early, or was there another way?

“I want to destroy it. I want to keep you. You’re mine, aren’t you? So then why do you need to leave?” His lips stretched into a smile, but his eyes weren’t smiling at all. “You can stay here with me. This is where you belong. Do you not want to be with me, Vegetto?” He leaned against his lover, his face by the man’s ear, “Stay with me . . .forever.” Turning his head slightly, Zamasu stuck his tongue out to run it along the cut on Vegetto’s cheek, licking up the small bit of blood.

“If you destroyed my only means home, I would resent you. Is that what you want?” Vegetto’s tone of voice was flat. Like the last time he was here, he could not be certain if Zamasu was just bluffing because he was upset or if he genuinely wanted to destroy the time machine. He had to be stern with him, “I’m worried about you, Zamasu.” But he also needed to be kind. Zamasu was very, very broken, wasn’t he? Could he mend him?

Resent him? The very thought made the god’s heart ache as he slowly leaned back again. The light had returned to his eyes and now he only looked sad, “No, I . . . I don’t want that . . . I want you to smile and to be happy as you always are.” Happy . . . Vegetto usually looked so happy. He was happy, too, with Vegetto around. Still . . . that happiness would always be fleeting as long as Vegetto was still just a fusion.

Sighing, Vegetto rested his hands on the god’s sides before studying his face to try and comprehend what was going through his head. “I want to be with you. The circumstances around my life just really suck. Unlike your fusion, mine is not permanent. At the end of it, I return to the two people I am made up of. They have lives and families . . . I can’t take that away from them. Don’t you understand?” Though how could he expect Zamasu to sympathize with something like that? Part of him, Goku Black, had killed several members of those same families. It was nothing shy of a miracle that he had grown attached to Vegetto, so it was too much to expect him to understand.

“I don’t care about them, Vegetto. The only mortal I care about is _you_.” He lightly played with one of Vegetto’s earrings, rolling the bead between his fingers. “Hm? Are these different potara from before?” It felt different than he remembered.

“What? How would I have different potara?” Vegetto pulled Zamasu’s hand away before standing from the seat. He slid an arm under Zamasu’s ass to hold him, the other arm around the god’s back so he could carry him. “Let’s go get your hands and my face washed up, okay? We can talk more inside. Wouldn’t that be better? We have time, now. We can talk for a bit. I want . . . I want to spend time with you properly.” He also wanted to have sex, but . . . he would save that for after his surprise later.

* * *

Vegetto waited on the couch while Zamasu went to wash his hands. He’d never spent any time anywhere else in the cabin other than in the bedroom, so it was interesting to finally have a moment to look around. It was pretty clear this had belonged to someone else. There weren’t any photos or anything like that, but the old blankets, the books, the magazines . . . things left in odd places with dust on them as though they’d been long forgotten . . . he couldn’t help but wonder what happened to the people who lived here. Did Zamasu and Black kill them so they could take it, or had they been killed by the androids long before that? Or maybe . . . maybe they had simply abandoned the place of their own accord.

Zamasu slowly made his way back down the hall from the bathroom, a small box in his clean hands. Just seeing someone sitting on the couch again made his heart flutter. He’d been alone for quite some time now. The walls echoed with the sounds of Black and Zamasu and their idle chatter, but he was always alone. 

Why could he not have Vegetto forever? Fate could be so cruel.

“There you are!” Vegetto offered him one of his goofy grins as he pat the cushion beside him, “What’s that you have in your hands?”

“Ah, this is . . . some disinfectant for your face. There are bandages as well, but I do not think your wound will require them.” He looked down at the box, his brows furrowing and his lips pursing for a moment before he seemed to shake some sort of thought away.

“I’m shocked an immortal god would keep something like that around. Or was it here already from the people who lived here before you?” He watched as Zamasu sat down beside him. Why did he look so uneasy? Did he still think all of this was a dream? Well, if he had a lot of dreams like this, it was understandable that he’d feel that way, but . . .

“It was for Za-ah. . . for Goku Black.” He had to stop himself and make sure he used the correct name. As irritating as it was that they’d given him that mortal’s name, it would be too confusing to refer to them both as Zamasu, especially since he was also Zamasu. “He came back injured frequently, so Zamasu had to treat his wounds.” He dabbed some of the disinfectant onto a cloth and leaned closer to the Saiyan, dabbing it over the wound.

“Oh . . .” It was awkward when Zamasu brought them up. They had never really discussed it in depth, but he remembered how upset Zamasu had seemed before when they came up. Zamasu was incredibly lonely, wasn’t he? He’d lost the companionship he once had and their romance and then he had lost the romance he’d had with Vegetto. At the end of it all, wouldn’t the result have been the same if Trunks had simply fled his timeline and never returned? But then Zamasu and Black would never have fused and they would have each other. . .

Wait, why was he thinking like that? It was wrong! Those two were definitely evil! They’d committed universal genocide on a grand scale! And yet . . . here he was on a couch with this guy, doing everything he could to be with him.

“What are you thinking about?” Zamasu tilted his head as he placed the box and the used cloth on the table in front of the couch. “You’ve gone silent.” He didn’t like it one bit. Vegetto usually didn’t shut up during their encounters, so why was he quiet now? It was like neither of them knew how to interact with the other outside of sex. He had felt very passionately before, even going so far as to let ‘I love you’ slip from his lips when Vegetto had left him the last time. Did he still feel the same? He wasn’t quite sure. 

“I was just thinking how nice it is for you to treat my wound. Thouuuuuuugh I wouldn’t have had it if you didn’t swing at me with a piece of your broken cup.” He offered the god a smirk, trying to lift the heaviness of the atmosphere a bit. 

“Tch, well . . . I couldn’t trust that you were real. Even now . . . even now it feels like a dream.” But he could hear him fully and he could feel him. 

“Would a kiss make it feel more real?” He hadn’t kissed him yet, had he? Things had gotten out of hand so quickly that they didn’t have the romantic reunion he’d imagined. “I really want to kiss you.”

Zamasu felt his entire face and ears heat up immediately. He could practically feel himself falling under this Saiyan’s spell yet again. He needed to push him away. Vegetto was still not permanent. This arrangement would only end in frustration for him and tie him needlessly to this planet. It was painful, but he needed to be done with him. “I . . . I . . . you need to go.”

“Do I?” Vegetto understood the internal struggle Zamasu was having right now. He wanted him to leave because he wasn’t permanent, right? It was fine. The Kai just needed a bit more convincing. “I love when your ears show your emotion. They’re drooped down right now and it’s cute.” He winked and grinned wide, making the god’s face turn an even deeper shade of red.

“Do not try and sway me, mortal.” The word ‘mortal’ no longer felt right on his tongue, especially not when referring to Vegetto. Vegetto, Vegetto . . . the name he’d cried out to the stars on so many occasions as he longed for him to return. Now here he was, right in front of him, and his mind refused to accept it as reality. “I cannot allow myself to cling to you any longer.”

“But I want you to cling to me.” Vegetto scooted a bit closer to him, removing his gloves and reaching out to place his palm over one of the god’s cheeks so he could run his thumb along that pouty lower lip, “I want to hold you for a while and cover your beautiful face in kisses. I want to spend time with you. I want to show you that I’m not just coming around for a booty call.”

“A . . . a booty call?” Zamasu scrunched his face. He had no idea what that was, but it sounded horrifically vulgar.

The Saiyan barked out a laugh, quickly shaking his head, “It sounds weird if you say it! What I’m trying to say is . . . I’m not just coming around for sex, so I don’t want you to think that. This time, I want you to show me somewhere you really like on this Earth. There have to be some spots that bring you peace, right? I want to see one. Most importantly, though . . . I want us to take our time and just enjoy each other while I’m here.” 

“Not have sex. Somewhere that brings me peace. Enjoy each other.” For some reason he was having a difficult time processing everything. “No, you need to leave. You need to leave and never come back.” Contrary to his words, though, Zamasu closed his eyes and reached up to place a hand over Vegetto’s hand, his fingers brushing lightly over his lover’s knuckles. “You shouldn’t have come back.” The volume of his voice had lowered considerably as he used his other hand to touch Vegetto’s extended arm. He traced the curves of those powerful muscles with his fingers just as he had done before. He wanted to remember it, but he knew it was best if he didn’t. He shouldn’t give in to this affection and this warmth. The sooner he could forget him, the better off he would be.

. . . but what if he didn’t _want_ to forget him?

“Zamasu . . .” Vegetto placed his free hand on Zamasu’s other cheek now, cupping the god’s face in his hands as he leaned in close enough that their foreheads touched, “You are beautiful. I don’t want to leave you. Isn’t it fine to indulge for a bit? Isn’t something better than nothing at all? You’re . . . you’re not okay. A life of solitude is breaking you.” This wasn’t going like he’d planned at all, but maybe he could still make it all work out in the end.

“Breaking me . . . yes. Yes it is.” He’d never admitted it properly before, but he felt certain that he was not the person he had once been. With everything that had happened, he felt that he had failed rather than succeeded. When he should be overjoyed, he felt only lethargy. “This is . . . the future I had envisioned, and yet at some point my idea of the perfect future changed. The time Zamasu and the one you called Black spent together was . . . very precious. If only they had not fused. If only they had not _needed_ to fuse.” He felt his anger rising, but he took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. What use was there in getting angry about it now?

“I’m glad they fused, though.” Vegetto offered a soft smile as he lightly brushed noses with the god, “Because of that, I was able to meet you. Sure, the circumstances are pretty rough, but . . . I got to experience something amazing even though I only exist through fusion.” He wanted to be with him now and always. Seeing the sadness in Zamasu’s eyes was painful. Was it safe for him to say he was in love with him? Was that okay even though they’d only seen each other a few times? 

“Perhaps it is a wonderful outcome for you, but I am stuck alone for all eternity.” Zamasu pulled away from those gentle hands and that handsome face to try and break himself out of Vegetto’s spell, “I can only take solace in knowing that all of these memories will fade with time and I’m sure once that time comes, I will harbor a newfound love and adoration for the many universes and the beautiful and unique worlds held within them.” He wanted to regain that sense of justice he’d once had. He won! He had eliminated the disease called mortals! Himself from the past would be ecstatic and yet he was only depressed. Surely the day would come when he could properly appreciate what he had accomplished.

Vegetto studied Zamasu’s face and the way his eyes looked out into the room as if he was seeing something that wasn’t really there. He looked thinner than he remembered, though he was already quite thin to begin with. Now that he was taking the time to really look at him, he could also see dark circles under the god’s eyes. Was he not sleeping and eating properly? It would seem that even someone who is immortal still needs to take care of their body. “Zamasu . . .”

“Ah, I got off track for a moment, didn’t I? Disregard all of that. There is no sense in lamenting over something I cannot change.”

He sounded so . . . defeated.

“Maybe we should just-“

“You wanted to see a place I like, right? I cannot think of many places I particularly enjoy, but there _is_ one I think you could appreciate just as I do. It is most beautiful at sunrise, but it will still look nice with the sun higher in the sky.” Somewhere he went often to put his mind at ease. He did not understand why Vegetto wanted something like that when he was still on limited time, but . . . something about showing Vegetto a place that was special to him did give him a fluttering feeling in his stomach. 

“A-ah, yeah . . . I would love to see a place that you like.” He knew Zamasu was only trying to change the subject, but that was fine. He wasn’t quite sure how to comfort him just yet. Surely he would be able to put his worries and agony to rest soon enough, though. It would all be worth it. “A place that you love must be really beautiful, right? Since you love beautiful things.”

The god stood from the couch and straightened his clothes a bit, “I love beautiful things . . .” He glanced down at his lover before offering him a very brief smile, “I love handsome things, too.” Embarrassed by his own words, he turned to head back out from the same way in which they had entered, leaving a bewildered Saiyan behind.

“W-wait! What do . . . what do you mean by that?” He shouldn’t read too much into it, but was that a confession? Just so casually like that? He hoped to hear it from him properly later. Just the very thought that Zamasu might love him gave him goose bumps.

* * *

The place Zamasu led him too wasn’t terribly far from the cabin. It was a cliff that jutted out over a valley that stretched as far as the eye could see. The valley was carpeted with tall grass and wildflowers that bent to the will of the wind. He could see that the sun was aligned with the stretch of land; he’d love to see it at sunrise someday. “This is really nice.” Nice at was, he couldn’t help but feel unnerved at the silence. Even in the lives of Kakarot and Vegeta, he’d only ever known a noisy atmosphere. Always some kind of action or someone around him. There was only the sound of nature here. “It’s so quiet, though.”

“There is great beauty in silence. I’d rather have silence than a mess of noise.” Or rather, that was once how he had felt. Nowadays, however, he longed for a companion to chat with. “Though . . . I do not mind your company. Even if you say many ignorant and ridiculous and vulgar things, I . . . I do like to have you around.” He felt his cheeks burning as he stared out over the valley, his hands clasped together behind his back.

“I’m the only person you can tolerate? I’m flattered, Mr. God!” Vegetto grinned like a fool, chuckling as Zamasu’s cheeks grew even darker with embarrassment. “So do you come here a lot?” He sat down on the grass beneath them. The grass was a shorter variety, almost more like moss in a way. Vegetto didn’t really know much about this sort of thing, though, so he couldn’t be certain. The world looked quite different than the Earth he knew. It was much more . . . overgrown. 

“I do. I come here nearly every day.” Zamasu hesitated at first, but took a seat on the ground beside Vegetto. He used to hate making a mess of his clothes, but what did it matter? He could replace them in an instant. 

“Oh yeah? What do you think about when you’re here?” Vegetto felt that he knew the answer, but he also felt that Zamasu really needed to talk about it and get it off his chest. He had time to listen to him, after all. He wanted to give Zamasu his time and his attention. He wanted to be more than someone who just came around for a quick fuck. He wanted to be so much more than that.

“I’d rather not discuss something like that. I think about many things and none of them are any good. It’s like I said – time will take these thoughts away from me and I will feel renewed. I simply need time to pass and I . . . I need to be able to move on from this place.” He needed to move on from his past as Zamasu and Goku Black and he needed to move on from Vegetto. Still, to think such a thought while sitting beside him made his chest feel tight. He most certainly felt quite attached to the Saiyan. Something about his presence was comforting.

“Well if you don’t want to talk about it, I won’t pressure you.” Vegetto wrapped an arm around his lover, his hand resting on the god’s side as he pulled him close, “I would give anything to spend each day with you. To eat meals with you. To sit and appreciate nature with you. To fall asleep and wake up with you in my arms . . .” When had he become so damn sentimental? Well, he’d never really experienced a relationship before since he didn’t have his own body. Relationship? Could this be considered a proper relationship?

Zamasu rested his head on Vegetto’s shoulder as the man spoke. Just hearing his voice was soothing, but his words were sending chills over every inch of his body. Did he really understand the weight of what he was saying? They were both thinking the same thing, were they not? What was it that they had between them? He never would have considered a mortal as a companion, let alone a lover, but . . . he, too, would give anything to have Vegetto with him always, “I . . . I also want that. If there was something I could do to keep you with me forever, I would do it without any hesitation.” The time machine . . . destroying it would force Vegeta and Goku to never leave him again and to fuse as often as he wished, but Vegetto made it quite clear that he would resent him for such an act. 

As he rubbed at Zamasu’s side with his right hand, Vegetto glanced down at the god’s face. He looked quite at peace right now. Even though a long silence fell between them, it didn’t feel awkward or tense in the slightest. It felt so . . . natural. 

Their first two encounters had been quite different from this one. The first, they had started as enemies. His own lust for the beautiful god had turned the tides quite quickly as he managed to convince Zamasu to let him have sex with him. Apparently his gentleness had struck a chord with the god . . . and something about him had struck a chord with Vegetto. Why were they so attached from the beginning? Because they were both born of potara fusion? Because they were both powerful beyond anyone’s wildest imagination? He really didn’t understand it at all and it was likely the same for Zamasu.

For the second encounter, their interest in each other was quite apparent. It had started off a bit rough as well, but the mood quickly changed once they were together. The end, especially, was heartbreaking. He didn’t want to leave him. He couldn’t bear to see Zamasu so upset. To think that this high-and-mighty god cried because he was leaving. They were both acting unusual, weren’t they?

Vegetto took Zamasu’s hand with his free left hand and held it in his palm. This action made the Kai stir a bit and it was only then that Vegetto realized Zamasu had been falling asleep on his shoulder, “It’s okay – you can sleep if you want to.” His voice was low and gentle, trying not to rouse his lover too much. 

“No. I don’t want to waste your time here. If you only have three hours, then . . . then I want to be able to see you for those three hours.” He hadn’t slept well in ages, though, and resting against Vegetto’s strong, warm body brought him a comfort much like the comfort Black had brought to Zamasu. If only he could sleep by his side. A sleep like that would be perfect for sure.

“Maybe instead of a goodbye, I could lay with you until you fall asleep so you don’t have to see me leave. Wouldn’t that be better?” That would work better for the surprise he had planned, anyhow.

Zamasu sat up straight, his gaze focused on his hand that rested in Vegetto’s palm. He watched the way the man ran his thumb over the back of his hand. It was a small gesture, but it felt nice. It was calming. “So I can wake up in an empty bed as I always do? It will really feel like you were a dream, then.” Zamasu pursed his lips, trying to will away the stinging he felt in the backs of his eyes. This damn mortal had truly ruined him. He needed him to be gone forever if he was ever going to recover from it. 

“Then I’ll leave something behind so you know I was really here.” He tugged at the sash around Zamasu’s waist with his right hand. “Maybe I’ll leave my sash behind each time I visit.” He grinned like an idiot when the god shot him an incredulous look, “What? Maybe you’ll get such a large collection, you could make a whole outfit out of it!” He laughed and gave Zamasu’s hand a light squeeze when the man huffed and shook his head.

“Or perhaps I can make a rope with them and tie you to the bed so you cannot leave me anymore.” Falling into the lighter mood, Zamasu shot Vegetto a smirk.

“Oh? Tie me to the bed? Now you’re speaking my language, Mr. God! I didn’t know you had such a kinky side!” He pulled Zamasu more against him when the god half-heartedly tried to pull away, “Hey now, the fact that you know what I’m getting at just tells me you’ve done something like that before.” Though now he remembered a bit of what Zamasu had told him. Black and Zamasu were apparently absolute freaks in the bedroom. Not entirely shocking.

“Hn. Perhaps someday I can show you what all I would like to do to you, you vulgar mortal.” Even though he tried to play tough, Zamasu’s cheeks and ears were a dark scarlet and he looked visibly embarrassed to be talking about something so obscene.

“I dunno, Zamasu, I don’t really want any part of what you used to do from what you’ve told me. That’s all a little _too_ wild for my taste.” He lifted Zamasu’s hand and kissed the back of it, admiring how soft his skin was against his lips, “I wouldn’t mind trying some of that out on _you_ , though.” He smirked over the back of Zamasu’s hand, winking at him when he realized the god was watching. As expected, Zamasu’s eyes widened and he quickly looked away again. He was just too fun to tease. “I didn’t hear a ‘no’, Zamasu. Does that mean you’re open to it?” He couldn’t help but grin now, as he once again kissed the back of his lover’s hand before lowering it so he could hold it properly.

“You are absolutely filthy, Vegetto.” Some of the things he said reminded him of what Goku Black would say. He remembered Zamasu was repulsed by such language at first, but had quickly grown to crave it. Both the filthy words and the filthy actions . . . once they’d had a taste of them, they just couldn’t be satiated.

“I hear you loud and clear.” The Saiyan chuckled and tilted his head to rub cheeks with the other man. It was nice. He wasn’t fighting or fucking or any of that; he was simply looking out at beautiful scenery and sitting close with a beautiful god. “Your world is beautiful, Zamasu.” It really was a beauty to behold. Everything looked completely natural, save for the cabin that was left standing. It was quiet other than the faint sound of animals in the distance and the sound of rustling leaves and bending branches. Never again would this world – or any of the other worlds – be marred by war or pollution. “But . . . what is there to enjoy in a world without mortals? Even if the world seems perfect, isn’t it kind of sad? It feels really empty . . . like it’s _too_ perfect.”

“There is no such thing as ‘too perfect’.” Zamasu’s voice was quiet and he didn’t sound so sure of himself. It was as though he was trying to convince his own mind that his ideals were correct. Did he actually have some regrets? “But . . . it does feel quite empty, doesn’t it? It would seem that even a god such as myself cannot properly enjoy this perfect cosmos. I’m quite certain it is because I took the body of the mortal Son Goku into myself. Surely if I had remained a pure god, I would find only happiness in this perfect timeline.” That was the only reason he could come up with. There was no way he was wrong. The mortals had committed so many sins against their worlds; it was only right they be eliminated.

At least he somewhat admitted he wasn’t perfectly happy with the outcome. It was clear that he was lonely and that this supposedly-perfect timeline was taking a toll on his mental health. Did he understand that he would likely go crazy if he remained here forever?

Vegetto placed his left hand on Zamasu’s cheek to turn his face so they could make eye contact, “What if . . . what if somehow I was able to talk to Beerus and Whis-“

“Vegetto . . .”

“No, no, hear me out. What if I was able to talk to Beerus and Whis and convince them to allow you to come back to my timeline.” He furrowed his brows as he stared directly into the silver eyes of his lover.

“That’s . . . why would I want that? Why would I want to go back to a timeline where the mortals were all alive and well? It would go against everything I set out to accomplish.” He could feel his pulse begin to race with irritation. What kind of thing was he asking? How ignorant! “It would be as though all of this was for nothing! It would be as though the lives of Zamasu and Black were thrown away!” He tried to move away from the Saiyan, but the hand on his waist gripped at the sash to keep him still.

“Zamasu and Black live on within _you_. You _are_ them. You accomplished what they wanted. The mortals have been eliminated from this timeline. Time will march on here and nature will run wild, just like you want. What more can you do for a world with no enemies? What purpose do you serve in a place like this?”

“What purpose do I serve?” Zamasu wanted to be angry at a question like that, but instead he only felt defeated. He had also asked himself that question many times. What more could he do for this timeline? He had eliminated the threat, so what remained?

“I didn’t mean it in a bad way, I just . . .” Vegetto dropped the hand that was on the god’s cheek, but continued to hold Zamasu close. “I just think you could be happier if you came back with me and lived a different life.”

“Came back with you?” Zamasu furrowed his brows, “So you can unfuse and leave me alone in a world surrounded by mortals? You are talking as though that is even an option. Even if I was so out of my mind as to agree to such a thing, I’d be stopped by the God of Destruction the moment I set foot in that world!” Was he strong enough to stop a God of Destruction in this form? It was possible, but he wasn’t willing to risk his own erasure to find out.

“That’s . . .” Vegetto pursed his lips, “I just want you to be with me. I want to be able to take you places you’ve probably never seen and do things with you that you’ve probably never done. I want to show you what it’s like to live a life like us. Forget about being a god and just be happy for a change.” He placed his free hand on Zamasu’s cheek once more, placing his thumb over the god’s lips to keep him from protesting, “I know you think it sounds awful, but I think I could show you a good time.” He smirked, “And not just in bed, either. I think someone like you would really like all that romantic stuff.”

What kind of nonsense was this mortal spewing? Forget about being a god? Live like a mortal would? Perhaps he really was dreaming all of this up. Why would Vegetto say something so absurd? It went against absolutely everything he had worked toward! It was true that he had accomplished his goal, however he did not kill the mortals only for the sake of nature, but also to quench his own desire to eradicate them. Being around mortals made his skin crawl and his blood boil! Vegetto was an exception somehow, but his acts of affection and lust toward this one mortal did not erase the hatred he had for the creatures as a whole.

“I can tell you aren’t interested in my offer.” Vegetto smiled, but it was a sad smile. He knew better than to think that Zamasu would just up and leave this timeline he’d put his very soul into, but it was worth a shot. “What if . . . what if I _was_ permanent and I asked you to come back with me.” He watched as Zamasu’s gaze softened considerably, “Would you come with me then?” He moved his thumb away from the god’s lips, instead using it to lightly rub at his lover’s cheek.

“That’s . . .” Would he leave all of this behind if Vegetto had a body of his own? He wanted to say with great confidence that nothing could make him leave his perfect utopia, but the words died before they could leave him. If Vegetto had a body of his own . . . did he not just say a moment ago that he would do anything to be with him forever? “That is not a fair question considering you are _not_ permanent.”

“But if I was.” Vegetto leaned closer, the hand on Zamasu’s side now sliding up to burying itself in the hair on the back of his head, “If I _was_ permanent . . . would you come back with me?” He stared into those wide, silver eyes, his heart pounding so hard the pulse was almost deafening as he waited for Zamasu’s answer.

“I don’t know what you want me to say.” Zamasu’s voice was low and uncertain. His own heart was beating rapidly from how close Vegetto was to him. He slowly lifted a hand to grip at the front of the Saiyan’s shirt, his other hand coming to rest on Vegetto’s cheek much like the other had done with him. 

“I want you to say yes. I want you to say you will come with me.”

“. . . will?” Zamasu tried to lean away a bit, but the hand on the back of his head kept him close.

“I meant ‘would’. Don’t try to change the subject.” Vegetto nuzzled his lover’s cheek, “I guess I need to do a little more convincing, huh? Or . . . are you not that into me?”

“What!? I waited all this time just for you, you horrible mortal!” There was that feeling again. That feeling that someone had reached inside his chest and gripped his heart, squeezing it to the point of bursting. “I waited . . . and even when you leave here again, I know I will continue to wait until you return once more. I hate it.” The nose and lips ghosting against his cheek nearly made him lose his train of thought. Why? Why did this mortal have such a powerful hold on him? Back when he left the last time, he’d even gone so far as to utter _those_ words . . . those words belonging to an emotion he did not believe he was capable of feeling toward anyone other than himself.

_I love you._

“Wouldn’t it be easier to just come with me?”

“You are not permanent! I will not go to that world only to be left alone and surrounded by filthy mortals!” His anger came out as only harsh whispers as he tugged on Vegetto’s shirt. Why did he keep asking him such a thing? It was ridiculous!

“Zamasu . . .” Vegetto finally loosened his hold on the back of the god’s head and leaned back again to look him in the eyes. “You’re right. I’m sorry. There’s no sense in asking you something like that. I just . . . I guess I just wanted to gauge how much I meant to you or something.” It was stupid, wasn’t it? Maybe Kakarot had made a mistake in wishing on the Super Dragon Balls. Maybe he’d made a mistake when he came back here. This whole thing had been a wild ride that was outside of his own understanding. He knew about relationships from both Vegeta and Kakarot’s experience, but each of those relationships was so different. 

“You mean too much to me. I hate it.” Zamasu held tightly to him, his eyes falling to Vegetto’s lips, “I am happy that all mortals have perished, yet it would devastate me if _you_ were to perish along with them. You, who was my enemy. You, who tried to break my spirit as a way to defeat me.”

“I, who fell for you instead of defeating you.” Vegetto added, his brows furrowing a bit.

Silence fell upon them both for a long moment as Zamasu’s eyes quickly locked with Vegetto’s again, wider this time than before. 

_Fell for you._

Something about this conversation reminded Zamasu so much of the conversation between Black and Zamasu where they each finally confessed their love for the other. Did Vegetto understand what he was saying? Did he really mean such a thing? He was not sure if these words meant less to a mortal. “What are you saying, Vegetto?” They were still close, their lips nearly touching as he asked the question. They had not yet kissed. Why not? He wanted to kiss him again, just like before. No . . . more passionately than before. If they had more time, why not use it?

“I think you heard me clearly, Zamasu. Do you hate it?” The hand on the back of the god’s head tightened its grip again.

“No. I don’t hate it. I hate that it makes me happy.” Happy . . . it was something he hadn’t felt in a long while. Vegetto could make him happy. This world, this universe, this timeline was all incredibly beautiful and perfect. It was what he had wanted all along, but . . . he could not say that he felt true happiness while gazing upon any of it. “Vegetto, you have not once kissed me since you arrived. Such a transgression is the most abysmal sin.”

“Ah-“ Vegetto suddenly grinned, breaking the tense atmosphere they’d managed to build. “You’re right, what was I thinking? I haven’t given my god a proper offering yet, have I?” They hadn’t said the words, but they each knew. Vegetto could not express how happy it made him to know that Zamasu cared about him. Loved him, even. He wanted to hear the words, just as he wanted to say them, but surely they both felt it was too soon. They’d say it when the time felt right.

For now, he pushed Zamasu over so the Kai fell onto his back, and he loomed over him, littering the god’s face and neck with feather-light kisses before finally crushing their lips together. It had not been ages for Vegetto, but he knew Zamasu had longed for this moment. Whatever he wanted, Vegetto would give it to him. He would give him more than Zamasu understood right now. 

Zamasu hungrily returned the kiss, his hands resting first on Vegetto’s back before slowly sliding up along the back of his neck and then into his hair, where he tangled his fingers in the chocolate brown locks. Soft. “Vegetto.” He felt out of breath as he broke the kiss long enough to whisper his lover’s name. That name he’d called out so many times in the last year only to hear it echo back to him. How pitiful. How pathetic. 

“I’m right here.” Vegetto snaked his arms around Zamasu, squeezing him tightly as he planted another string of kisses on his lips, nose, forehead, and cheeks. He wanted to absolutely smother him with affection. 

Without warning, Vegetto suddenly rolled to the side, bringing Zamasu with him so that he was now on his back with the god on top of him, looking rather bewildered. “Haha, what’s wrong? You don’t like being on top?” His hands rested on Zamasu’s back now, his fingers rubbing at the muscles through the fabric of his clothes. Those powerful muscles were well-hidden for sure. He looked far more lean than he really was, though . . . he did feel considerably less muscular than he remembered. Had he lost weight? Could gods lose weight? 

“Be careful what you suggest, Vegetto – I may just take you up on such an idea.” Zamasu smirked as he leaned his face down to nuzzle his lover’s chest. Vegetto had a broad chest and shoulders and his body was very well-toned and built. He had a fantastic physique that Zamasu wished he had more time to properly admire and explore. Goku Black was in excellent shape, but it paled in comparison to Vegetto’s body. He wanted to see what that body looked like in a hot shower. Water coating every curve with droplets running down between his-

“Zamasu?”

“Hm? Huh? Ah . . . what?” He allowed such mortal desires to distract him – how obscene.

“You were spacing out with this really creepy look on your face . . . you can’t say something like that and then make that kind of expression; makes me nervous.” Vegetto laughed, but his brows were furrowed with concern as he studied the face of Zamasu. “Are you okay? I mean . . . I mean I know you went through a lot while waiting for me, but . . . you feel thinner and you’ve got dark circles under your eyes. I didn’t think a god, especially an _immortal_ god, could get malnourished or suffer from lack of sleep, but . . .”

“I’m fine. Well . . . no. I’m fine while you are here. While you are here, there is clarity. It’s like I’ve been drowning all this time and you’ve pulled me to the surface.” Did Vegetto comprehend such an analogy? He wasn’t sure of another way to explain it properly. “Such an amount of time ought to pass quickly for a being with a lifespan as long as mine. A few hundred days is really no time at all – or so I once thought.” Zamasu began to run both of his hands through Vegetto’s hair, his eyes focused on what his fingers were doing as a way to distract himself from thinking too deeply about what he was saying. “Those days did not pass quickly, though. Each day felt longer than the last and I could feel my own mind slipping away from me.”

Vegetto opened his mouth to say something, but quickly closed it again. What could he say in response to that? There hadn’t been anything he could do to cut the amount of time Zamasu had been waiting. So instead he just started up at the god’s face, his eyes catching the exhaustion that was now more apparent than it had been before.

“You say that you will return every 30 days or so. It sounds like such a short amount of time, and yet . . . and yet I know it will feel like eternity. And I worry . . . I worry that each time I slip back under the water again, I’ll fall further and further each time and I fear that one day . . .” His voice trailed off for a moment and his hands stopped moving before his eyes finally looked directly into Vegetto’s eyes beneath him. “I fear that one day you won’t be able to pull me back out again.”

“That won’t happen.” Vegetto reached up to brush the long chunk of hair out of Zamasu’s face. He looked so damn sad. It was an expression similar to that of when he’d left the last time and he hated seeing that. It hurt. “It won’t happen. You won’t lose yourself like that.”

“Auditory and visual hallucinations. Insomnia. Dare I even say depression?” Zamasu’s hand moved from Vegetto’s hair to one of the fusion’s earrings to play with it instead. “I did not understand such feelings and such malfunctions of the mind. I took it upon myself to dig through books upon books to try and understand these new emotions. I did not have such feelings prior to my fusion with a mortal body. I suppose this goes to show that only the soul of the one you called Goku Black was that of a god – his mind was still a mortal organ.” He struggled horribly with it day after day. Even after discovering the names behind what he was experiencing, he did not understand the reason. It was frustrating to think that even after the mortals were eliminated, he still suffered from the mortal he’d fused with.

“Zamasu . . . I don’t . . . I . . .”

“It’s okay. I’m not looking for you to console me for it. This is a result of my own shortcomings.”

“You’re not-“

“Why is the mind of a god not powerful enough to overcome the emotions of a mortal? When had my own mind become so weak?”

“Zamasu, you aren’t we-“

“Was it because of the relationship between the Zamasu of the past and the Zamasu of the future? Did that companionship cause this change?”

“That’s not-“

“Was it because I tried to fill that void with you when you showed me the smallest bit of affection? Was it because . . . was it because I allowed myself to grow attached to you and long for you? Is that why I’ve become such a pathetic shell of my former self?”

“Zamasu!” Vegetto held the god’s face in both hands after he slapped both cheeks to snap him out of his rambling. “You are _not_ weak! You just have never experienced those emotions before. When you fused, Zamasu and Black lost each other. It’s like you’ve experienced losing two loves at one time. Even though you accomplished your goal, you were alone at the end. The world was darker without the people you loved. And then I . . . I left you, too. I left you twice. Your heart just keeps getting broken again and again. Anyone would be crushed by that.”

“I am not ‘anyone’. I am the most supreme god! Something like this . . .” 

“But you’re part mortal, too. Maybe the Zamasu from before wouldn’t have cared, but this Zamasu does.” Vegetto slid his hands to the back of Zamasu’s head and pulled him against his chest. “It’s fine to be upset. The only one judging you is you. I don’t think you’re weak for it. I know you’re strong. You’re really, _really_ strong. Being upset by something isn’t a sign of weakness.”

It felt nice to lie atop Vegetto, his head on the man’s broad chest as those hands buried themselves in his hair. One hand slid down to his back and rubbed slow circles on it to try and comfort him. It worked, too. Just being against Vegetto like this and hearing his heart beating in his ear made it feel as though a warmth had washed over him. Vegetto was here. He had come back. He was not permanent, but he wanted to be with him. It hurt that he could not stay. For now, though, Vegetto was with him.

“I do not understand your kindness toward me. At the same time, I still do not understand my own attachment toward you.” Zamasu moved his head so he could look up at Vegetto’s face while still resting against his chest. Vegetto’s hands did not stop their gentle and affectionate motions, though.

“I don’t really get it, either. Does it matter? I like what we have together. Someone whose strength rivals my own and he’s really, _really_ pretty, too!” Vegetto grinned at the blush that quickly spread over Zamasu’s cheeks and ears, “I like how you always talk about how beautiful you are, but you get embarrassed if I say it. That’s really cute.” His words succeeded in making the god blush even more, those silver eyes narrowed with embarrassment. He was really damn beautiful.

_He really fucking loved this guy._

“It is strange when you say such things. It holds a different meaning.” Zamasu rested one hand on Vegetto’s chest while the other reached up to lightly caress one of the Saiyan’s cheeks, “So . . . then I can call you handsome, yes? It feels strange to say it, though. Calling a mortal such a thing . . . but . . . you are handsome.” His face felt as though it was on fire. “You embarrass me incessantly and even cause me to embarrass myself. What a troublesome creature you are, Vegetto.”

“I’m glad you think I’m handsome, but you shouldn’t call me troublesome just because you get all flustered, Mr. God.” The hand on his cheek was so soft and gentle. What would the others think if they could see this side of him? He was like a completely different person from the god they’d fought against. Was it really his doing or had something changed within Zamasu himself? That would likely forever remain a mystery.

When he did not hear Zamasu fuss about his jab, Vegetto tilted his head a bit to get a better look at the god’s face. His eyes were closed and his lips were parted just a bit. Had he fallen asleep? “Hey now, don’t fall asleep outside. Why don’t we go back to the cabin so you can sleep in your bed properly.” This was actually perfect for his plan. He just needed Zamasu to actually go along with it.

“Ah, no. I did not mean to fall asleep . . .” Zamasu’s eyes opened, but they felt so heavy. Why did his body want to sleep now of all times? Could it not wait until Vegetto had to leave again? It was likely the warmth of his body and the gentle rhythm of Vegetto’s pulse that had lulled him to sleep so suddenly. If only he could have such comforts every night when he needed to sleep. Would his insomnia be cured by something like that? “I’m fine. I don’t need to sleep.”

“Yes you do.” Vegetto carefully sat up and shifted the god so he could stand up and hold him bridal-style in his arms. 

“Vegetto, no. I want to spend time with you. It’s fine. I can stay awake.” Zamasu gripped at the front of the Saiyan’s shirt, his brows furrowed in irritation with himself. 

“You haven’t been sleeping well, right?” Against the god’s wishes, he began to carry him back toward the cabin, “So let me lay with you while you fall asleep, just like I said before. Even if you wake up and I’m not there . . . wouldn’t it be nice to fall asleep beside me? And I’ll be back again; you’ll never have to wait as long as you did this last time.”

“You just arrived! We haven’t done anything at all! I do not want this time wasted.” Why was Vegetto insisting upon him going to sleep with him still there? He had mentioned the same thing moments ago. “Why do you insist on this? What is the reason?” Was he planning to do something? Was he just not wanting to say goodbye? It would likely be less painful if he didn’t have to watch him leave, but waking up to an empty bed was horrible as well.

“Because you need sleep and you’ll sleep better in my arms, right?” Vegetto offered his lover a smile as he approached the cabin. Zamasu would definitely feel better once he woke up. Right now he seemed tired and stressed. He’d been through a lot emotionally. Vegetto wasn’t really an expert on reading people, but it was fairly obvious. “No matter when you sleep, you’ll wake up alone, right? So then it’s better to fall asleep with me, isn’t it?”

“Th-that’s . . .” It irritated him that Vegetto was right, but he would much rather spend every minute with him. The time to wait for Vegetto’s return was incredibly short for a Kai, but he knew it would still feel like an eternity. Time seemed to flow quite differently when his heart longed for it to pass. 

“Maybe you’ll even have some steamy-hot dreams about me!” Vegetto laughed at the embarrassed glare from Zamasu as he went inside the cabin and into the bedroom. He’d only been here twice and already he felt like he knew the layout pretty well. He most certainly knew how to get to the bedroom. This time, though, he wouldn’t have sex with Zamasu. This time he would get to just admire him and talk to him and touch him affectionately. Things were different this time and would be different forever. “I’ll take care of you.”

“Hm?” Zamasu arched a brow at the sudden change in Vegetto’s mood. How did one go from being so vulgar to saying something like that?

“Ah, sorry! I was just thinking about something . . . but . . . I _will_ take care of you.” Vegetto gently sat Zamasu in an upright position on the edge of the bed.

“I do not need anyone to take care of me. I am more than capable of handling myself. I think that much is quite clear.” Still, somehow hearing those words from Vegetto’s lips made his heart beat a little faster and caused a fluttering feeling in his stomach. What really did this mortal mean by such a thing? He’d not heard those words from anyone before – not even Black had said them to Zamasu. It made sense that a god would not speak with the same fashion as a mortal, though.

“Heh, I know, I know. You’re the all-powerful, all-knowing, perfect god Zamasu. Don’t start giving me a speech.” Vegetto stuck out his tongue and quickly backed away to avoid the swing of one of Zamasu’s legs, “Hey, don’t try to kick me! You’re a punk god, you know?” And he loved that about him. He loved a lot about him. He hated what he had done and he hated his ideals, but yet he loved him anyhow.

_He loved him._

“A punk god? I do not know what that means, but I’m certain it is meant to be derogatory toward me. You seem to have forgotten your place, mortal. Or rather . . . I feel you never understood it to begin with.” Zamasu dismissed it with the wave of his hand. The insolence of mortals generally made his blood boil, but somehow it lit a very different fire within him when Vegetto did it. Perhaps it was because he had the strength and ability with which to back up his attitude. 

“Yeah, well if you keep using words like ‘derogatory’, then I’m going to keep using words _you_ don’t understand.” Vegetto ran a hand through his hair before folding his arms across his chest and giving Zamasu a pout.

“. . . you do not know what that word means?”

“. . . no.”

“Amazing.” Zamasu smirked as he leaned back, resting his weight on his palms.

“Tch, don’t be mean. There are a lot of things you don’t know, too. Maybe you’re a perfect god, but you’d make a really shitty mortal.” Vegetto kneeled down in front of the god and began to gently unfasten the blue sash around his waist.

“Thank you.”

“That wasn’t a compliment.” Vegetto couldn’t help but smile, though. This little back and forth was so simple, but it was nice. He wanted to be able to have this idle banter every day. Zamasu was horrible. A god who had committed genocide on a universal level several times over . . . but romance never really did make much sense, did it? Who’d have ever thought Bulma and Vegeta would get together after everything _he_ had done? It wasn’t on such a grand scale, but . . . maybe Zamasu could change at least a little bit. Maybe he could convince him to leave this desolate timeline and live a better, more fulfilling life in the other timeline.

Zamasu watched as Vegetto pulled the sash away and folded it neatly before placing it on the table by the bed. That sash meant so much to him. In times that he felt his sanity would soon leave him, that little bit of fabric was his only sliver of comfort. Even now, with Vegetto himself right in front of him, he felt uneasy without the sash around his waist. 

“Have you worn that all this time?” Vegetto noticed Zamasu’s discomfort and the way his eyes lingered on the sash.

“. . . yes. I’ve had to wash it many times, but I was always careful not to tear it. It lost your scent quite some time ago.” The god stared at it for a moment longer before turning his attention to the Saiyan kneeling in front of him. “I felt like such a fool for being attached to it, but that’s what my heart wanted.” He felt a lump form in his throat as he spoke, so he quickly fell silent on the matter. He had been so hopelessly pathetic about it. When it had lost Vegetto’s scent, it was as though he’d lost him all over again. It should not have been so devastating.

“I’m really flattered that you took care of it.” Vegetto took hold of Zamasu’s hands, bringing them to his lips so he could kiss the knuckle on each individual finger. “I’m sorry I kept you waiting, Zamasu. I promise that this encounter will be far better for you than the last. Things will get better for you.” His brown eyes locked with Zamasu’s silver, “I just wish I could convince you to come back with me.”

“You say go back with you, but what would be different if I did?” Zamasu’s eyes fell half-lidded as he gazed into Vegetto’s eyes and face. “Whether I wait for you here in my timeline or wait for you in the other timeline . . . either way, I am waiting. I would much rather wait alone in the place I created for myself than have to wait while surrounded by the mortals I hate.” Leaving this timeline would be the same as admitting he was wrong. He was most definitely not wrong! A timeline devoid of mortals was perfect and was exactly what he-

“Zamasu?” Vegetto snapped his fingers in front of the god’s eyes to rouse him from his thoughts, “You get lost in a thought a lot, don’t you?” Vegetto smiled softly. Zamasu’s incessant rambling and overthinking had been annoying initially, but he’d grown fond of it. It was just one of Zamasu’s quirks and it was a bit endearing. Though . . . he hadn’t really done that this time, had he? Had he done it on their second meeting? It was almost as though Zamasu was losing his passion. “I get it, it’s okay. You don’t want to live in a world with mortals, but . . . you never did answer my question.” Vegetto stood and helped remove Zamasu’s overcoat, folding it neatly as well and setting it on the table with the sash.

“Question? What question?” Zamasu watched the Saiyan carefully, admiring how his hands worked. He’d nearly forgotten that Vegetto had removed his gloves earlier.

“If my body was permanent, would you go to the other timeline with me?” He pulled Zamasu’s boots off his feet before removing his own. 

“I . . .” Would he really be able to say no in such a situation? It was one thing to think about it hypothetically, but it was quite different to determine how he would react realistically. “I want to say no, but . . . I don’t know if that is an accurate response.” The god crawled further onto the bed as Vegetto went around to the other side so they could both be together under the sheets. It would be the first time they’d done something like this. A visit from Vegetto without any sex at all? It was actually quite nice to just talk to each other and be near each other. Zamasu cursed himself for being so tired.

“Yeah?” Vegetto reached a hand to lightly brush at the hair that framed his lover’s face, “What do you think would be a more accurate reaction, then?”

“More accurate . . . I think just you being permanent would make me act foolishly and go against everything I have desired.” A Vegetto he could see every waking moment of every day. Someone he could talk to, someone strong enough to spar with, someone who was enough of an idiot to entertain him and yet smooth enough to woo him. “I think I would . . . I would probably go with you.” Zamasu’s voice was considerably more hushed now. “I worked hard for this perfect setting, and yet it is very much like you said. What purpose do I have now in such a place? Nature does not need someone to maintain it; I’ve already rid nature of the parasite which was destroying it.”

“Parasite . . . that’s what mortals are, huh?” Vegetto sighed as he scooted closer, “I wish I could change your way of thinking, but you’ve probably had that kind of opinion for a really long time.”

“Far longer than you’ve been alive, most likely.” Zamasu inched a bit closer as well. It was okay, wasn’t it? He wanted to be wrapped in those powerful arms and pulled into Vegetto’s warm chest. If only he could wake up in much the same manner.

“Wait, what? Longer than I’ve been alive? I’m like . . . 40-something if you go based on Kakarot and Vegeta’s ages.” Vegetto furrowed his brows. He’d never really considered Zamasu’s age before, but gods lived for a really long time, didn’t they?”

“40 what?” Zamasu arched a tired brow as he got close enough that their bodies were up against one another. 

“Years? What else would I be talking about?” Perhaps Zamasu was more tired than he thought.

“A-ah . . . is that all? Your race must not live for very long . . .” A light blush colored the god’s cheeks, even moreso when Vegetto wrapped his arms around him and gave him a tight squeeze.

“Why do you say that? How old are _you_?” Vegetto glanced down as Zamasu suddenly rubbed his face against his chest. It was really damn cute.

“It’s hard to say, really, considering the flow of time is quite different in the world of the Kais versus your planet Earth. If I had to estimate . . .” Zamasu scrunched up his face for a moment before slipping his arms around the Saiyan’s waist, “A . . . a few million, perhaps?”

“ ** _YEARS!?!?_** ”

His sudden outburst startled the Kai and made him look up at Vegetto’s face with wide eyes. His ears even turned downward a bit to signal that he was upset by his reaction.

“A-ah, haha . . . I’m sorry. That’s just . . . I didn’t realize you were an old geezer.” Vegetto grinned, knowing that statement would only irritate Zamasu further.

“I am most certainly not _old_. I am quite young for what I am, you absolute heathen.” He wasn’t angry, though. He was wrapped in Vegetto’s arms and he felt warm. The sound of Vegetto’s voice was comforting when he wasn’t yelling. “I can hear your heartbeat when I have my head against your chest.”

The fusion warrior stared down at Zamasu for a moment, confusion written on his face. What was with that sudden change in mood? “Yeah. That’s because I’m alive.” He chuckled, but took this opportunity to begin rubbing slow circles on the god’s back. “You should try to go to sleep, you know? I’ll hold you just like this until you do.”

Zamasu could feel his eyelids growing heavy as the sleep that often eluded him was now calling out to him instead. “I don’t want to sleep. When I wake . . . you will be gone.” It felt like he had only just arrived. Why was Vegetto so determined to have him fall asleep? Perhaps it really would be easier than having to say goodbye and watch him either leave or defuse, but falling asleep in this warm, tight embrace only to wake up in a cold, empty bed would be just as devastating. “I don’t want you to leave.” Just as before, he was showing Vegetto quite an awful side of him – his weak side. Though that side of him seemed to be more dominant than his prior personality. Vegetto made him act so foolishly.

Hearing the god say those things made Vegetto’s chest hurt. “I know. I don’t want to leave you.” Still rubbing Zamasu’s back, Vegetto slid his other hand up into his hair to hold the back of his head and hug him tightly to his chest. “Remember last time when we talked about how nice it would be to wake up together and I could make you breakfast?”

“. . . yes. I’ve replayed our encounters in my mind countless times by now.”

“Well . . . I can’t cook, so that could never become a reality. So . . . you’re not missing out on anything there.” Vegetto offered the Kai a goofy grin when Zamasu leaned away enough to look up at him.

“. . . was that an attempt to comfort me?” Zamasu arched a brow.

“Yes. Did it work at all?”

“Not in the slightest bit.” But the corner of Zamasu’s lips did tug upward a bit into a small smile as he reached up to touch Vegetto’s cheek, then his ear, before finally playing with the potara once more. “The potara . . . I still feel they look different somehow. They are not quite the same as in my memories.” He could not help but feel that something overall was amiss. Was this really just some vivid dream after all?

“Maybe Shin bought new earrings.” Vegetto chuckled as he played with his lover’s hair. He could see that Zamasu was having difficulty just keeping his eyes open at this point. His tired face was really cute.

“That’s not how that works – don’t say such ridiculous things.” Zamasu wasn’t upset at all, though. “Vegetto?”

“Yeah?”

“I . . .” The words died on the god’s lips as he pondered whether or not to actually say them.

_I love you._

“Zamasu?”

“I want you forever, Vegetto.” He couldn’t say it. Now wasn’t the time. He needed to mull over his true feelings for a while a longer. He needed to understand the weight of saying such words to a mortal. He needed to grasp what that meant for his own future and his own beliefs. “I do not want to be alone again. All I do anymore is think. All day, all night . . . I think. My thoughts have turned against me so often. I do not know how much longer I can bear them.” He truly did feel as though he was going insane bit by bit.

“Zamasu . . . I know you won’t believe me right now, but I feel things will get better. I think . . . I think you will find happiness. I can’t really say why, but I’ve got a pretty good gut instinct.” Vegetto kissed the top of the god’s head when he once more buried his face in his chest. “Get some sleep, Zamasu. I can see you’re sleep deprived. I’ll hold you until I can’t anymore and I’ll make sure not to wake you when I leave, okay?”

“Don’t go . . .”

The way Zamasu’s voice quivered broke Vegetto’s heart. He could feel a lump form in his throat almost immediately as he fought back his own emotion. He knew this would all work out, but he needed to convince Zamasu to calm down. “H-hey . . .” But it was hard enough to speak, let alone to find the words he needed to say.

“Don’t go, Vegetto. Please don’t leave me alone again.” Zamasu’s hands gripped at the back of his gi, his fingers pulling and twisting the fabric in frustration with reality. “Why could the dragon not make you permanent? Why only 3 hours? It will never be enough. Never . . .” He hated to break down as he did, but the one hope he’d been holding onto for this past year had been shattered. What more did he have to look forward to? What hope was left? “I cannot say goodbye over and over again . . .”

“Shhh . . .come on. Please stop crying, Zamasu. Please.” He could feel the god’s tears soaking through the front of his shirt and onto his chest. He felt awful. Perhaps this was all a terrible idea after all . . . “It won’t be as bad as you think.”

“I’m sure it is simple for you to say such a thing. You will return to your timeline and then disappear into nothingness once you’ve defused. It will seem like the blink of an eye when you get to see me once more, but I . . . I have to wait for you to return. I will wait and for what? For 3 hours of time with you.” He hated everything about all of this. If only he had not given in to Vegetto’s flirting and pressuring that first time. What would have happened, then? 

He would have killed Goku and Vegeta and the other mortals and he would have been alone. He would have still lamented over his loneliness from the loss of Zamasu and Goku Black and there would have been nothing for him to hope for at all.

. . . was there really no good ending for him? Was that the sacrifice he’d made in exchange for his flawless timeline?

“We’ll figure something out, okay? Maybe there is something Whis can do – he did tell Kakarot he’d look into it further since we didn’t get what we wanted from the Dragon Balls. I just have this feeling it will all work out.” He removed the hand from Zamasu’s hair to instead place it on his cheek to tilt the god’s head back. “Do you trust me, Zamasu?” He looked so pitiful with tears slipping down his cheeks. Where had that confident god disappeared to? He was just so overcome by loneliness and hopelessness, wasn’t he? It was . . . sad.

“It is not a matter of trust, Vegetto, I just don’t-“

“Do you trust me?” Vegetto ran his thumb under his lover’s eye to wipe some of the tears away. “Please rest easy and just have some kind of faith in me. I know you don’t have any faith in mortals or other gods, but . . . give it a shot just this once. Please?” Zamasu’s eyes looked so dull now compared to what they had been. No more craziness or mischief in them – only emptiness. He hated it, but he would bring that light back for sure.

Zamasu was quiet for a long moment before finally reaching up to rest his hand over Vegetto’s hand on his face, “I suppose I trust you. I’ve trusted in your word thus far, have I not? I would not have waited so long if I didn’t. Even when I tried to convince myself that you had lied to me, that Son Goku had lied to me, that you would never make such a wish and that you would never return to me . . . I waited still because a part of me still believed.” He sighed and gently swatted Vegetto’s hand away so he could wipe at his own eyes and then drape an arm across the Saiyan once more, “Vegetto, I-“ Again he stopped himself. He wanted to tell him how he felt, but it still did not feel like quite the right moment. “No, it’s nothing.”

Vegetto frowned as Zamasu buried his face in his chest once more. What was it that he was trying to say? Probably something he was overthinking about again. He had some things he wanted to say himself, but he’d save them for a better time. “Get some rest, Zamasu. Make sure to get more sleep and all of that. I want you in tip-top shape next time.” 

“Hmm . . .” Zamasu hummed a bit in return, “I . . . look forward to seeing you again, Vegetto.” The words sounded strangled as he muttered them, his voice betraying that he felt like he was dying inside. He hated all of this. How many mistakes had he made to lead to this point? When would he finally be able to enjoy his perfect future?

Would that day _ever_ come?

“That day will be here sooner than you think, Zamasu. I promise.” Vegetto pressed Zamasu’s hair down a bit so he could kiss the top of his head, his other hand still rubbing at the god’s back until he was finally able to drift to sleep.

* * *

_The world they had created together. This perfect world, perfect universe, perfect cosmos in its entirety. Their goal had finally been realized. This perfect utopia . . ._

_. . . this imperfect utopia._

_It was perfect for nature, for the plants, but it was not perfect for the lone sentient being who remained._

_“Why do I see you every time I sleep?” Zamasu spoke the words to Zamasu and Goku Black, who stood quite a distance in front of him. They appeared in his dreams often. Usually he witnessed their memories from one perspective or another, but every now and then they stood before him, simply staring at him as though judging the mess he had become._

_“What is it that you want from me? Why do you not speak?”_

_Were they an ill omen? A sign that something was about to happen? They always stared with cold eyes, their lips set into a frown . . . and they did nothing and they said nothing and nothing ever came of it._

_But this time as he moved toward them in his dream, the distance between them actually grew shorter. Usually he could walk or run, but they remained the same space away. “How . . .?” He now stood before them, a mere foot or so between them . . . and they smiled. Both of them smiled beautifully, their eyes crescents above their rounded cheeks._

_“Why do you smile now? What has happened?”_

_They smiled and their lips moved as though speaking, but no words came out as they stretched their arms out toward him as though wanting an embrace._

* * *

Zamasu’s eyes snapped open, his heart racing as his mind tried to piece together what was happening. It had been another dream like what he’d had many times before, but it had been quite different this time. Were even _they_ trying to comfort him, just as Vegetto had?

. . . Vegetto . . .

The god squeezed his eyes shut again. Vegetto. Vegetto was gone again. He said he would come back, but . . . he had to wait again. Could he really do this every time? All of this for only 3 hours of companionship. “Vegetto . . .” He buried his face into the chest in front of . . . him . . . chest?

Time itself felt as though it had stopped as Zamasu’s eyes opened wide yet again. His heart was pounding even harder, so much so that the thumping was almost deafening in the silence of the room. The room always seemed so dark when he’d first opened his eyes, but he could see that Vegetto was still very much right in front of him . . . and he was snoring.

“Th-this . . . no . . . I must have only fallen asleep for a moment. I am reacting so intensely for nothing.” But his heart and his words were not at all aligned and his pulse continued its rapid pace. “Vegetto . . . Vegetto, you cannot sleep. You’ll defuse in the bed with me . . .” He slowly sat up, reluctantly pulling away from the warmth of the Saiyan’s arms as he did so. “Vegetto . . .”

Vegetto was snoring, his mouth hanging open as he grossly drooled on the pillow. His hair looked a mess, too. How did he already look so disheveled? Surely he had not been asleep for very long. How unrefined . . . but dare he think there was a certain charm about it?

“Vegetto.” Zamasu rested a hand on the man’s shoulder, shaking him a bit roughly until he heard an interruption in his snoring.

“Hm? Ah . . . wha?” Vegetto rubbed at his mouth with the back of his hand to wipe the drool away.

“You fell asleep. You were supposed to leave after I fell asleep . . .”

“Zamasu?” Vegetto still seemed quite out of it. His eyes were opened to barely slits and a goofy grin stretched across his face.

“Who else would it be?” The hand Zamasu had on Vegetto’s shoulder gripped at the fabric of his shirt. He was so warm. He looked so happy. Why couldn’t things just stay like this?

“Good morning, beautiful.” He grinned wider still, “Oh, maybe I should say ‘good evening’, huh? I guess the sun set while we were asleep.” Vegetto stared at Zamasu’s face. It was dark, but he could still make out his features. He watched as the god’s silver eyes slowly widened as he seemingly tried to piece together the situation. It sounded as though he thought he’d only fallen asleep for a moment, when really . . . it had been an unknown number of hours.

“The sun set?” Though his heart had begun to calm itself, it was once more pounding hard. “The sun had only just risen when you’d arrived.” The windows were dark. “The day is not shorter than three hours.” The sun really had set. “If it was truly night now, you would have defused.” Vegetto was still here.

Vegetto was still here. Vegetto was still here. Was this another dream?

“I’m dreaming again.”

“Ahhh, no no! You’re not dreaming!” Vegetto sat up now, both hands holding Zamasu by his shoulders, “Uh . . . surprise! Ah hahaha!” This was not going at all like how he’d planned it out in his head, “I guess I suck with surprises, huh? Um . . . when I said the Super Dragon Balls couldn’t grant my wish . . .”

“You were lying.”

“W-well, I wouldn’t word it quite like-“

“You told me it was three hours . . . but you were permanent?” Zamasu felt as though he was floating. It was impossible for him to properly process all of this information and all of the implications. He was lying. The three hours was a lie.

“Yeah.” Vegetto laughed nervously as he rubbed the Kai’s shoulders, “I’m . . . I’m permanent! I wanted to surprise you and I thought about telling you so many times, but . . . but I thought it would be cool to . . .” The Saiyan pursed his lips, “Are you angry?”

He was permanent. Vegetto would not defuse? He had his own body? It was a trick? He wanted to surprise him? “I’m . . . I don’t . . .”

“Ahh sorry, sorry. I guess I shouldn’t have done that when you were already so upset, but I just . . . you remember last time when we were together? After we had sex, we got to lay together for a little bit and . . . and you said it would be nice to fall asleep in my arms and wake up to my face. So I . . . so I wanted to surprise you by letting you wake up to my face like you wanted . . .” Vegetto’s hands slipped away from the god’s shoulders and fell into his own lap as he looked down at the bedsheets in shame. It was a good idea in his head, but it was really cruel to lie to him like that, right? He should have run his idea by Bulma or someone first, maybe.

Zamasu just stared at Vegetto’s face, his own mouth hanging open slightly as he struggled to process what was happening still. “I . . . I had said something like that, hadn’t I?” Of course Vegetto remembered it, since for him not much time had passed since their last encounter. But to think that he would have the idea to make that wish a reality . . . “You’re an absolute idiot, Vegetto.”

“I’m sorry . . .” Vegetto bit at his lower lip, unable to bring himself to look Zamasu in the eyes right now. “I shouldn’t have-“

“Shhh.” Zamasu placed a finger over the Saiyan’s lips to silence him before using that same hand to grasp his chin and tilt his head up to look him in the eyes, “My heart is beating so fast that it feels like it might really burst. I feel so lightheaded that I may faint. I want to cry and laugh and scream all at the same time. I have felt such emotions overwhelm me many times before, just this morning even, but this time it is different. How can the same reactions apply to both anguish and happiness? I do not understand it at all.” He gazed into Vegetto’s brown eyes as though he might find the answers there, “I do not understand you, either. I have never understood the ways of the mortals and I do not suppose I ever will, but . . . but I would like to understand _you_ , Vegetto.”

After a long moment of puzzled silence, Vegetto wrapped his arms around the god and flopped back down on the bed, pulling Zamasu down with him, “And I want to understand _you_. You gotta open up to me more for that, though. You kinda already do, I guess. You cry in front of me.” Vegetto held him close, looking into those beautiful silver eyes as best he could in the dark, “We have time now. We have time to learn more about each other and to understand each other. We have as much time as we want.” Even though he knew it already, it still felt surreal to finally tell Zamasu the truth. 

“We have time.” Zamasu repeated the words, his lips quivering just a bit as he tried to maintain his composure, “We have time. . . we have time, Vegetto.” Time. Time had been the bane of his existence as of late. Time, loneliness, regret. Regret? Yeah, he regretted more than he cared to admit. It didn’t matter right now, though. Right now he was wrapped tightly in Vegetto’s arms, against that broad chest, looking into those sweet, dark eyes . . . and this time the brown hair and eyes didn’t mean he was leaving. 

“Vegetto, I . . .” 

There is was again. Zamasu had started with those two words several times before they’d fallen asleep together. “What is it, Zamasu? What is it you keep trying to tell me?” He ran his thumb over Zamasu’s lower lip briefly before resting his hand on the Kai’s face. He had something he wanted to tell Zamasu as well.

“. . . I love you.”

Vegetto’s eyes widened and his breath hitched in his throat. Had he heard him correctly? “Y-you . . . you . . .”

“I love you, Vegetto. Even though you are a mortal, I love you. Even though you were my enemy, I love you. Even though the bastards whom fused to make you are the reason Zamasu and Black no longer exist . . . I love you.” He maintained eye contact with Vegetto as he spoke, “I didn’t want to admit it to myself, but . . . but when you left the last time, the words just slipped out so naturally that it must be true. You occupied my thoughts constantly and made me second-guess so many of my decisions and my ideals. I hate how much you have changed me, and yet I would not give you up even to undo all of it.”

It wasn’t typically in Vegetto’s character to get emotionally overwhelmed by much of anything. He was cocky, confident, and usually joking around. Right now, though, Zamasu’s words and the passion with which he said them made tears prick at the backs of the Saiyan’s eyes. It felt like someone was squeezing his neck as he fought back the tears to try and be tough. The emotion won in the end, though, and soon enough he was crying. In the dim light of the room, he could see Zamasu was crying as well and he used the hand on the god’s cheek to gently wipe them away before they were soon replaced by yet more tears.

“Zamasu . . . I love you, too. I’ve not felt it before, since I’ve never had a life of my own, but I know the love that Vegeta has for his wife Bulma and the love that Kakarot has for his wife Chichi. I know their love and . . .and I feel like that’s what I feel for you. I have my own life just to be with you. Me, a fusion. I’m a being that existed only for the sake of fighting powerful enemies . . . and you gave me a reason to be more than that. I love you, Zamasu. Even though you’ve committed mass genocide on an insane level . . .” He couldn’t help but laugh a bit at that. It was too crazy to think about how awful Black and Zamasu had been. This fusion warrior Zamasu, though . . . “But I’ve seen your gentle side. I’ve seen the god who loves nature and loves the universes so much that he took it upon himself to save them.” He lifted his hand from Zamasu’s face to run it through his beautiful white hair. “You think you can live with a stupid mortal like me for a while?” He asked the question with a grin as tears of his own slipped down his cheeks. 

“Hmmm . . . willingly spend my days with a mortal. A very loud, noisy, fool of a mortal.” Zamasu pretended to ponder the question as he gently wiped the tears away from his lover’s eyes, “I don’t know, Saiyan . . . what’s in it for a perfect god like me, hm?” With the same hand, he slid his fingers over one of the long bangs in Vegetto’s face, “I think I may require a bit of convincing.”

The fusion warrior smirked in response, his lips slowly parting into another grin, “Some convincing, huh? I think I’m pretty good at telling you what you like to hear, Mr. God. It was my flawless charisma that got you into bed with me that first time, you know?”

“Ohh? You only got so far because I allowed it. You are disrespectful, vulgar, and noisy.” Zamasu smiled as he said the words, though, both hands now buried in the Saiyan’s hair as he pressed his body as close as he could against Vegetto’s. They had all the time in the world. It would only stop when they wanted it to stop. They could take their time . . . Vegetto wanted to be here. Vegetto loved him. Love . . . he never thought it would be possible to feel such an emotion for a mortal, but . . . this mortal was quite special. He could not name only one thing that made him special, but a great combination of things made him worthy of god’s affection. 

“Yeah, keep telling yourself that.” Vegetto rolled so Zamasu was now on his back and Vegetto loomed over him, “You just couldn’t resist my charm, right? Was it my devilishly-good looks? My award-winning smile? Or maybe my fantastic sense of humor?” He rubbed noses with the god beneath him.

“That confidence was certainly part of it.” Zamasu draped his arms over Vegetto’s shoulders, crossing his wrists behind the man’s neck, “Your confidence, your strength, your ability to tap into god ki, your cockiness that grated on my nerves . . . all of those things had me ill with anger and yet you pushed all the wrong buttons in all the right ways . . . you’re a clever mortal.” Zamasu lightly brushed his lips against that of his lover, his eyes half-lidded as he stared into Vegetto’s eyes.

“Ohhh, I’m clever? What a nice compliment.” Vegetto used his elbows to hold himself up so he could hold Zamasu’s face in both hands as he finally pressed their lips together. Zamasu must have been waiting for such a moment, as he kissed him hungrily in return. The hands on the back of Vegetto’s head held him tightly to make sure he didn’t break away sooner than desired. He’d kiss him forever if he could.

Eventually, though, Zamasu’s hands did slip from the back of his head and down the sides of his neck, allowing Vegetto to break the kiss, but keep their faces close. “Zamasu . . . I hope you slept well, because I want to make love to you until the sun comes up.” 

The god furrowed his brows in confusion, “Make love . . . is that . . . sex?” Just saying the word made his cheeks turn an even darker shade of red. 

“Yeah, but . . . when people who love each other have sex, they call it making love. Doesn’t that sound better?” His own memory was a bit of a mess, given that he shared the memories of two very different people, but he was thankful that he knew enough words and concepts to woo his new beloved. 

“Making love . . . it certainly sounds far less vulgar than any of the other words to describe it.” Making love. . . because they were in love. Zamasu’s ears lowered a bit as the blush spread down the length of those as well. “Then . . . make love to me, Vegetto.” Even though the words were not so obscene as asking him to have sex with him or, worse yet, asking him to _fuck_ him, it still felt embarrassing and made his entire body feel warm.

Vegetto’s eyes widened from the request. Something about the way Zamasu said it made his heart nearly stop. The way his ears drooped and his brows furrowed with embarrassment, the way he’d lowered his voice when he asked, the way his fingers curled a little bit . . . he loved every bit of it. “I would love nothing more than to make love to you, Zamasu.” He smiled, lightly pecking the god’s lips, “You don’t have to be quiet, you know? It’s just us.” Only them in this entire timeline. Would Zamasu really leave this place as he’d said earlier?

“Saying such a thing to a mortal is . . . so embarrassing.” Zamasu pursed his lips, but pulled Vegetto down to capture his lips to keep him from saying anything more. He wasn’t sure how long it would take before he got over the fact that he’d fallen in love with a mortal – maybe he never would. It didn’t matter, though. He loved this clumsy, vulgar, irritating mortal.

As they kissed, Vegetto took the opportunity to run his tongue along Zamasu’s lower lip, prompting the god to open his mouth in confusion just enough that he could slide his tongue inside. He could hear a soft grunt from his lover, but didn’t bother to break the lip-lock. Surely Black and Zamasu had done something like this, right? Maybe not. He could use the memories of Vegeta and Kakarot (though mostly Vegeta) to shower Zamasu with love and affection. He would show him what proper love was. 

With their mouths quite preoccupied, the Saiyan tucked the fingers of one hand down into the neck of Zamasu’s shirt, but he abruptly broke the kiss when he felt one of Zamasu’s hands slide away. 

“Don’t.” Vegetto grabbed Zamasu’s arm by the wrist, his eyes now open as he stared into the bewildered eyes of his lover.

“You want my clothes off, right? It would be far more efficient for me to simply-“

“No. This isn’t about efficiency and speed anymore. We don’t have a time limit anymore.” He pulled the arm to his face and kissed Zamasu’s wrist, slowly trailing his lips up until he could kiss the god’s palm, “We have as much time as we need. I want to undress you. I want to undress you and look at you and put my lips all over you just like I told you before. Remember? I asked if you’d let me do that and you told me yes.” It was likely that Zamasu didn’t remember many of the little things from their last encounter since it had been over a year ago. For Vegetto, though, it felt like only days ago.

“A-ah . . . did I agree to such a thing? You are leading me so far astray, Vegetto.” Zamasu felt incredibly embarrassed, but he managed to smirk anyhow. They didn’t have a time limit, so they could properly take their time with each other, just as they had wanted the first time. How had they come so far in only two encounters? How had those brief meetings been so powerful? Now wasn’t really the time to consider such things, though.

“Leading you astray? Aren’t you doing the same thing to me? I was supposed to beat you, you know?” Tucking his fingers down into the neck of Zamasu’s shirt once more, he leaned back and pulled hard in either direction, effectively ripping the shirt right down the front. “You were just really damn gorgeous, so I couldn’t help myself. As soon as I saw you without all that goop on the one side, I really wanted you. I . . . I had different plans initially.” He felt bad for having such thoughts, looking back on it, but at the time it wasn’t so unreasonable. “You were my enemy.” Vegetto rested a hand on Zamasu’s cheeks before slowly slipping it down the god’s jaw, neck, and then his chest. “I was going to fuck you, defile you, make you beg me for mercy just as all of those people you killed had probably begged for your mercy . . . I wanted you to suffer since I couldn’t kill you.”

Zamasu was quiet for a long moment as he processed what Vegetto was telling him. That had been the initial feeling he’d gotten during the beginning of their first encounter, but . . . “That doesn’t match your personality at all, does it? Someone like you isn’t fit for torture. I think that no matter how cruel your enemy is, you wouldn’t be able to do something like that.” Zamasu placed his hand on Vegetto’s cheek this time, running his thumb over the man’s lower lip, “I did many things that you mortals would deem unforgivable, yet here you are. I guess we’re both wrong in the eyes of those mortals, aren’t we?” He couldn’t help but smile a bit at that.

It didn’t really matter, did it? In this timeline, they had everything to themselves. There was no one left to judge or to try and get some kind of revenge. This world would belong to them and only them. Everything they did was correct and divine . . . divine? Vegetto? Perhaps . . .

“Heh, I guess I’m a little too nice. But . . . I think if it was anyone else, I would have just beat them down as hard as I could. You really caught my eye, though. The enemy I fought the last time they fused wasn’t good-looking at all. You, though. . . you’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.” Vegetto’s eyes were half-lidded as he rested his hand on Zamasu’s stomach. If only there was better lighting for him to really see Zamasu. He liked the mood of the darkened room, but it was a little _too_ dark. If only the moon were brighter . . . “Ah! Hang on.”

Without further warning, Vegetto tossed the sheets off the both of them, got up from the bed and went to either side, opening the blinds on the windows to let the moonlight in. “A full moon . . . perfect.” It wasn’t enough to make it bright, but it was plenty enough to drench the bed in a soft moonlight for him to better see what he was doing . . . and to better see his beautiful lover.

“Opening the blinds for such an intimate act . . . how obscene.” Zamasu let his hands rest on either side of his head on his pillow as Vegetto climbed back on top of him.

“I mean, who’s gonna see us? The animals?” The Saiyan huffed a laugh, “Now then, where was I?” He was now straddling Zamasu’s hips, his dark eyes trailing over the god’s body. The way the moonlight kissed his skin and made it shine here and there was the most enthralling thing he’d ever witnessed. “Your skin is . . . it’s almost like it’s glowing.” He ran his hand gently down Zamasu’s chest and stomach again as though he was touching something ethereal . . . he was, wasn’t he? This was not the body of a Saiyan or a human, not even that of a mortal. This was the body of a god. This was a being that was supposed to be far beyond the vision and reach of mortals. So elusive that most mortals did not even believe in gods anymore.

“Glowing?” Zamasu only stared up at Vegetto’s face, watching the mesmerized look in the man’s eyes. Was he really so fascinated looking at a body he’d already seen twice before? “Are you truly so transfixed?” The Kai shifted a bit to remove the torn shirt. “This is a body not meant for mortal eyes. Understand that you are an exception.” Again he touched Vegetto’s face and watched as those sweet brown eyes rose to meet his own gaze, “And these hands, the hands of a god, were not meant for touching mortals. Yet again, you are an exception.”

“I’m glad you find me worthy enough to touch you, Zamasu.” Vegetto smiled softly as he took hold of the hand on his face, moving it so he could kiss Zamasu’s palm while still maintaining eye contact. “Your eyes . . . they are shining, too. I’ve never seen you in the moonlight properly before.” Was it strange that he felt like crying? It took all he had to keep from getting himself choked up. He had a life of his own now. He had a lover who was the most beautiful creature in all of the cosmos. He feared if he continued to speak, he’d really lose his composure.

“A mortal who can tap into the power of the gods . . . you amaze me, Vegetto.” Since when was Vegetto able to describe things as elegantly as he was? Well, elegant by a mortal’s standards. The way he described the god’s features was making his entire body feel hot with both embarrassment and desire. Had Black and Zamasu ever described each other so beautifully? Had they ever noticed how the other looked by the light of the moon? Nature’s light . . . “I think you look best in the sun. In the sun, I can see that your hair and eyes are brown. I can see your brilliant smile and your proper complexion . . . though you shine far more bright than the sun ever could.”

“Zamasu, I . . .” Vegetto wasn’t sure how to respond to such compliments. To be told he was the sun to Zamasu’s moon, that he shined brighter than nature’s light itself . . . he could feel tears slip down his cheeks, but Zamasu only smiled gently and wiped them away with that same hand. “I love you so much, Zamasu.”

“And I love you, Vegetto.” Zamasu pulled his hand away to first pull down the top of Vegetto’s gi and then, with the Saiyan’s help, he slipped his hands up underneath his shirt and slid the fabric up along his torso before removing it entirely. “Vegetto . . . your body, your strength, your affection . . . give it all to me and only me. Give everything you have and everything you are to me.”

Vegetto wiped the remaining wetness from his face, sighing contentedly, “Who else could I ever want when I’ve got you?” He leaned down and captured Zamasu’s lips, relishing in the way Zamasu buried his hands in his hair almost immediately. He wanted nothing more than to feel his limbs wrapped around him as they made love well into the night. He finally had the time. He wanted to show him his love properly, to touch places on his body he hadn’t touched before, to please him in ways he had not yet pleased him. “Will you do the same for me? Will you give yourself fully to me?” He whispered the words against Zamasu’s lips before trailing kisses along his cheek and down to his neck, where he stopped to nuzzle the soft skin.

_Will you give yourself fully to me?_

That was quite a loaded question, was it not? Was he willing to give himself fully to a mortal? Zamasu and Black had been quite in love with each other, unaware that their days were numbered and time was short. The love they shared was, in Zamasu’s eyes, a perfect and ideal love that nothing would ever compare to. Could he leave that love in the past and give himself and his love fully to Vegetto? To a mortal?

. . . he already had, hadn’t he?

“Yes. I feel that I already have, even though I had not intended to. Never in all my many years of life could I have anticipated that fate would take such a turn. Just being without you for a mere few hundred days felt like a full lifetime had gone by and not a day passed where I did not think of you. My chest ached horribly for you. I wanted you and only you and nothing else I did could satiate that horrible longing and emptiness. I want you . . . I want you forever.”

“Well . . . for as long as I will live at least.” Vegetto leaned back a bit so he could look into Zamasu’s eyes again, “I should live longer than a human, so it won’t be-“

“ ** _Forever_**.” Zamasu grabbed fistfuls of the Saiyan’s hair, holding him tightly as he stared into his eyes, “If you will not wish for immortality with the Super Dragon Balls, then I will take it upon myself to-“

“Woah, woah, hey . . . let’s talk about all of that later, okay?” He didn’t want Zamasu to get sidetracked with something else for him to worry over. Immortality . . . it wasn’t something he wanted right now, but maybe that would change someday. “For now, let’s just enjoy the beginning of our lives together.” He grinned when he felt the god’s hands relinquish their hold on his hair. “You get pretty feisty when you’re passionate about something – I love that.” Zamasu was definitely mentally unstable. Would it really be okay to bring someone like that back to the other timeline with him? He was extraordinarily powerful, hated mortals, and could mentally snap at any moment. But . . . he wanted to live his life with him, and not in this desolate timeline.

“Vegetto?”

“Hm?”

“You’re staring . . . it is strange.” Zamasu’s brows furrowed with concern as he shifted a bit beneath the Saiyan’s weight.

“Ah, sorry. I guess I got a little lost in my head. You of all people should understand that.” He laughed, grinning when the god shot him a half-hearted glare, “I just . . . I just get carried away thinking about what the future has in store. I’m really excited about it!” He took this moment to quickly kiss Zamasu’s forehead, nose, chin, and both cheeks.

“The future . . . I am reluctant to get my hopes up.” He had once looked forward to the future as Black and Zamasu. The two had grandiose ideas of what life would be like after the mortals, but that future could never become a reality. Would something cause this to fail as well? It would be foolish to allow himself to get carried away as he had before; it was best to remain as reserved as possible in case this, too, should fall through.

. . . he wasn’t sure he could make it through another catastrophic disappointment with the last bits of his sanity still intact.

“Now you’re the one spacing out.” Vegetto lightly pat Zamasu’s cheeks before he moved off of the god’s hips and slowly slid down his body, “I guess that’s my cue to do something that you can’t ignore, right?” He started to hook his fingers into the hem of Zamasu’s pants, but stopped himself and instead bit at the hem with his teeth.

“What are you doing, you strange mortal?” Zamasu had raised his voice a bit, each word laced in confusion. Why was Vegetto _biting_ his pants? 

Vegetto spit out the fabric, offering Zamasu a sheepish grin, “I’m going to pull them off you with my teeth.”

“. . . why would you do that?” Zamasu’s worries were forgotten for the time being as his mind struggled to grasp Vegetto’s actions. “Use your hands.”

“I don’t wanna use my hands. I wanna use my mouth.” It was fun to do strange things that unnerved the god. Zamasu had definitely lived a prim and proper life wherever his race grew up, so he wasn’t used to the stuff he deemed ‘vulgar’ or ‘obnoxious’. Just seeing his expression whenever he tried something new was enough to make him want to do outlandish things more often. “It doesn’t really matter how I do it, does it? As long as your pants come off in the end, that’s all that really matters.”

Zamasu huffed, his face heating up, “How is it that you can say such elegant things to me and then only moments later, say something so vulgar?”

“Maybe it’s a mortal ability.” Vegetto laughed before once more biting at the fabric of Zamasu’s pants and slowly inching them down the god’s legs. Even though Zamasu most definitely found it strange, he did lift his hips and legs a bit to help Vegetto get the pants down and off him. Once they were gone, Vegetto stood up on the floor at the foot of the bed and looked over his lover, “There we go. Now I can see all of you.”

Yet again, he was treated with the way the moonlight kissed Zamasu’s skin. Every inch of his body had some kind of light cast upon it and made it appear as though it were emanating light itself. He was so insanely beautiful. Each curve of his lean muscle, the bend of his hips, the pout of his lips . . . all of it shined so perfectly. “You’re just so fucking beautiful.” He didn’t even have the heart to tease him for being fully erect already. How could he, when he, too, was already standing at full attention?

“You know . . .” Vegetto broke his gaze as he pulled off his own sash and the bottom half of his gi so that he was also completely nude. “Even though I didn’t have to be alone as long as you, the moment I became my own person, all I wanted to do was rush back here. I missed you already. I . . . I’m so sorry it took so long. I can’t imagine what it would be like to be separated from you for that long. We’ve only been together for a short time in totality, but . . . but I feel like you’re the only person in all of existence that I could be with like this.”

“Vegetto . . .” It was awkward and uncomfortable to have those eyes wandering his body. Even when the Saiyan looked away to rid himself of his own clothing, just lying there on the bed with nothing to cover him felt strange. There was no one else who would see – only Vegetto. It was fine, wasn’t it?

_“You’re just so fucking beautiful.”_

Vegetto had a brutish way with words, but the intention and the meaning was not lost on Zamasu.

“I hear ya, don’t worry.” Vegetto crawled back onto the bed and on top of Zamasu, their bodies pressed together as he brushed his lips against those of the other, “I just want to make sure you understand how much I adore you and want to be with you.” He slid his arms up under Zamasu’s back, “I hope you don’t regret falling for a mortal like me.”

“I have regretted it every day since you left me the last time. I was an absolute mess because I had fallen for you. I should have been thrilled at my success and yet, all I could do was long for you.” It felt good to have Vegetto’s arms wrapped around him, his larger body resting atop his own. It was a bit strange to feel a very obvious erection against his abdomen, but . . .

“I hope I can make it up to you, then. I’ll make sure that by the end of it all, you’re glad to have me.”

“If you truly are permanent, then I already am glad to have you.” Zamasu rested his hands on Vegetto’s upper arms as he took the lead this time and kissed the larger man on top of him. “I was not wrong in what I did. We . . . me and myself . . . we were not wrong. However, you are correct that I seemingly have no place in this world any longer. A world devoid of sentient life – who can I speak with now? Who can I celebrate with?” And now Vegetto was here. It was not his true love, but those two would live on within him. Though he had to wonder; if the fusion Vegetto could be separated from Goku and Vegeta, could they not then ask the Dragon to separate out the two who fused to create him as well?

Vegetto broke the kiss, biting lightly at Zamasu’s lower lip, “You’ve got _me_. I’ll never agree with what you did to this timeline, but . . . what’s the sense in arguing over something that’s already been done, right? We’ve just gotta focus on the here and now. Right now I’m here and I’ve got a fucking gorgeous, naked god beneath me. I’ve also got all the time I could ever want to make sure I do everything I’ve been wanting to do to this perfect body since the first time I saw it.”

The Saiyan warrior grinned as he watched a dark blush spread across Zamasu’s face and ears as those lovely gray eyes widened with embarrassment. “I think my favorite thing is making you blush, Zamasu. You were so full of yourself and so hateful before . . . and now you’re just really damn cute. I really love you a whole lot!” He squeezed the god tightly against him, burying his face in his neck. Zamasu was his! He could finally spend time with him and talk to him and hold him and kiss him and . . . and just do anything! He could experience life with him, too! Never before had he had a life of his own! They could visit parks and aquariums! He could take him to restaurants and try all kinds of different food! 

“If I was not immortal, you’d likely have killed me with how tightly I am being held.” Zamasu’s voice was strained as he struggled to breathe.

“A-ah, sorry! I just . . . I got excited thinking about things again.” He released his hold on the god and moved his arms from beneath him so he could put his hands on either side of his shoulders and prop himself up a bit, “I just can’t stop thinking about how I have my own life to live and I get to have you in it. I’m really damn lucky!” He leaned down so his mouth was beside the god’s ear. He watched as Zamasu shivered a bit in response to his breath ghosting over his skin, “Don’t you want to imagine our future, too?”

“Imagine our future? What do you mean by that?” Zamasu’s voice was quiet and uncertain. All of this was a drastic change from the future he’d intended on having. A future with Vegetto did not sound awful, yet it terrified him more than he could verbalize.

“You know, what we’ll be able to do . . .” Vegetto used his tongue to toy with the potara earring before dipping the tip briefly into the god’s ear, drawing a startled gasp from him, “I can show you things you’ve probably never seen before. Parks, aquariums, zoos, amusement parks, movie theaters . . . and you’ll never wake up alone ever again. Maybe you can even teach me how to cook a few things.” He ran his tongue along the top of Zamasu’s ear, nibbling lightly on the tip just before Zamasu was able to move his head enough to yank it away, “And as often and as passionately as you’d like, we can make love. Morning, noon, night . . . inside or outside . . . on the bed, the floor, a table, a counter . . . a beach, a mountaintop . . . in the light of the sun or the light of the moon . . . we can make love.”

As each word left Vegetto’s lips, images flashed before Zamasu’s eyes as he tried to imagine what Vegetto might be seeing right now. How obscene for him to say such things, though. Having sex in all of those places? Would it be in a place meant only for them? A place where no other mortal could go or see? A special retreat for just the two of them . . . Black and Zamasu had had something quite like that. It was . . . nice to think about.

“Vegetto . . .” His hands once more found their way to the Saiyan’s back, his fingertips desperately gripping at the man’s skin as he felt engrossed in the idea of a special place for just the two of them forever. Was something like that possible? Could they make it possible?

“Zamasu . . .” Vegetto nipped again at the Kai’s ear before capturing his lips in a quick and sloppy kiss. As he broke it once more, he leaned his weight onto one arm so he could lightly touch Zamasu’s face and run his thumb along the god’s plump lower lip. Again he could not help but notice the ways in which the light of the moon reflected off of him. Zamasu’s face really was without flaw and his eyes were hypnotic. Would he really get to wake up to such a beautiful face every day and fall asleep beside it every night? Would he really get to hear that lovely, soothing voice whenever he wanted? Feel those soft, delicate hands whenever he wanted? Hold tightly to him whenever he wanted?

Zamasu stared up into Vegetto’s eyes as the man stared down into his. The thumb on his lips and the body pressed against his own only made him more eager for Vegetto’s touch. He wanted more kisses, more touches, more pleasure. He wanted to wrap himself around Vegetto and pull him so close that their bodies might never separate. Though as he imagined such things, he felt something wet touch his cheek. Had he begun to cry unwillingly yet again? No . . . then . . . Vegetto? 

“What is wrong? Why are you crying?” The Saiyan had a small smile on his face, yet he had tears slipping from his eyes. Why would he cry? What thoughts were going through his head that upset him?

“Huh? What?” He wiped at one of his eyes and sure enough there really were tears. “Ah, sorry. I didn’t even realize it. I just . . . I was a fusion, Zamasu. I only existed to fight and now . . . now I get to have my own life. I get to exist in the real world with everyone else and I get to do it all with you at my side. I just . . . I just keep thinking about it.” He mopped up the tears with the back of his hand, but they were only replaced by yet more tears. “No matter what happens in this new life of mine, I know I’ve already got what I need to be happy. I just want the sun during the day, the moon at night . . . and you every minute of every hour for as long as I live.”

“The sun . . . the moon . . .” Zamasu could feel his lower lip quivering as he tried to process what Vegetto had just said to him, his silver eyes wide and brimmed with fresh tears.

“. . . and you.” Vegetto finished for him as he lightly kissed the god’s forehead, “That’s all I really need. No matter where we end up, I’ll be okay as long as I have those things.” He pulled Zamasu’s bangs out of his face so he could kiss his forehead again and see those wide, shimmering eyes by the light of the moon.

“Vegetto . . .” And now they were both crying. Weren’t they supposed to be having sex? Yet . . . “When did a mortal learn to say something so extravagant? Look what you’ve done to me. You’ve turned me into quite a mess.” He first buried his hands in the Saiyan’s hair again before bringing them down to hold his cheeks, “Just an absolute mess. Mortals really are trouble, aren’t they? To be able to do this to a powerful, perfect god such as myself. You have been nothing but trouble from the moment I saw you.” Through his words, the corners of his lips slowly stretched to the sides and his eyes became crescents over his cheeks . . . and he smiled. Zamasu smiled as tears cascaded down his cheeks and it was the most beautiful thing Vegetto had ever seen.

“Y-you smiled . . . you’re just so fucking beautiful. I love you so much, Zamasu.” Vegetto also grinned, briefly pressing his forehead down against that of the other before once more capturing his lover’s lips. “I love you.” He muttered the words between kisses, his own hands holding onto the god’s face as though he may somehow disappear if he didn’t, “I love you.” He couldn’t say those words enough to show him how he felt. His heart had never experienced this feeling before, but he’d experienced it through the lives of Vegeta and Kakarot. A life and a love of his own. 

“I love you too, Vegetto.” Love. A word he had used prior to fusing. A word he’d only uttered to another incarnation of himself. A word that he would have sooner bit off his own tongue than even consider uttering to a mortal.

A word he could give to Vegetto with all of his heart.

“Never leave me again, Vegetto.” His voice cracked as the words barely escaped him. It felt too reminiscent of their last time together. Everything had seemed so perfect until Vegetto had to leave him again. “Please . . . please don’t leave me again.” He felt so pathetic and desperate and so unlike himself, but he knew Vegetto did not judge him for it. He would not tell anyone about the sorry state he was in right now. With Vegetto, he would be okay again. No longer would he roam through an empty world with no one by his side. Even if he did go to the other timeline, wouldn’t it be fine as long as he had Vegetto?

“I won’t leave you. I’m with you forever now.” He wiped at Zamasu’s eyes before wiping at his own. It was inevitable that they’d both eventually break down like this. “I’m all yours, _Mr. God._ ” He smirked at the last bit, trying his best to lighten to the mood at least a little. He wanted to see that smile again if he could, too. It had really taken his breath away.

Zamasu huffed a short laugh, his hands slipping down the Saiyan’s neck and shoulders before coming to rest over the man’s broad chest. “You are mine, are you? Yes, you are.” His. He would fall asleep and wake up with this mortal man at his side. “So then I shouldn’t have to say it again.” Emotional as he was, he noticed Vegetto’s attempt to cheer him up.

“Huh? Say what again?”

“. . . make love to me, Vegetto.” Zamasu lifted his head the short distance to capture Vegetto’s lips, biting playfully at his lower lip, “I . . . I missed your touch, Vegetto.” It was so embarrassing to say that. His chest felt as though it were on fire, but he wanted Vegetto to understand how much his body and his heart both craved him. 

“A-ah . . .” Vegetto stared at him for a moment, a bit bewildered by the sudden change of the mood. He wasn’t upset about it at all, though. “I like when you tell me exactly what it is you want and what you feel, Zamasu. You should tell me a little more.” He lowered himself down on top of the god again and buried his face in his neck as he felt Zamasu’s hands slide around to his back again.

“You want me to embarrass myself more than I already have? I believe I’ve done that quite enough as of late.” Smirking, Zamasu suddenly grabbed the back of Vegetto’s head and held him in place, then leaned to the side a bit so he could nip at the Saiyan’s ear, “You always make quite a mess of me. Do I need to get you back in the mood, mortal?” He chuckled into the man’s ear. It was strange to use the term ‘mortal’ as a bit of a pet name at this point, but it would feel strange not to use it much in the way Vegetto still used ‘Mr. God’. How impudent. 

Vegetto shivered from the sound of Zamasu’s voice right in his ear. “Hey, what do you think you’re doing? That’s my job.” His cock had begun to go soft from their shared moment a bit ago, but it had quickly stirred back to life once more. He could probably get off just from Zamasu’s voice alone if he ever really wanted to. That, paired with those teeth against his ear . . . Zamasu knew what he was doing.

“I can do this sort of thing too, you know. The one you called Black loved to do this sort of thing with Zamasu.” He was made up of the two of them. While they had fundamentally the same soul and the same ideals, there were instances where their personalities varied greatly. The more dominant Goku Black side of him did desire to take the reins with Vegetto, but . . . he’d save that for another day. After all, they now had all the time they wanted. “You like it, right? The sound of my voice.” This time he used his tongue to play with the potara, much like Vegetto had often done to him. It earned him a muffled gasp from his lover. “This fake potara . . . you really thought they would trick me?”

“Heh . . . they worked well enough, even if you did notice they were different.” Vegetto tried to pull back, but Zamasu only held him tighter. That voice in his ear was going to drive him crazy.

“It was a cruel trick. Someday I’ll punish you for it.”

“Punish me? And just how do you plan to do that?” Vegetto laughed nervously and tried to pull back again. This time Zamasu did release him from his grip so the Saiyan could prop himself up a bit, “If you intend to top me in bed someday, you’d best be prepared to fight me for it.” He smirked down at the god, trying to regain his composure. His heart was racing once more and his cock was aching for some attention. 

Something about Vegetto’s words paired with that smirk of his made the god shiver. The way the moonlight hit the Saiyan’s face wasn’t making things any easier, either. He could make out his strong jawline, his high cheekbones, and the slight pout of his lower lip. He really was a beautifully-crafted mortal, wasn’t he? While he was not particularly attracted to Vegeta or Son Goku (though his attraction to Goku’s face was debatable, really), he found Vegetto to be sublime. “I would love nothing more than to fight you for dominance one day, Vegetto.” Zamasu accompanied the words with a low growl, his tongue running along his own upper lip. It was vulgar, obscene, and quite unlike him, but his body had been craving this moment for a while and Vegetto had awakened those mortal desires within him yet again.

“I have no intention of letting you win, you know.” Vegetto silenced the god with another kiss, his hips rolling to grind down against Zamasu. The two moan against each other’s lips just before Vegetto broke the kiss and instead pressed the middle and ring finger of his right hand past his lips instead, “You know what to do with those, right?”

Even as Zamasu began to lick and suck at the two digits, he maintained eye contact with Vegetto. How could someone still look elegant while doing something like that? He was just really damn beautiful. So beautiful that he’d managed to grab the Saiyan warrior’s attention when he ought to be fighting him instead. A beauty that could distract a Saiyan from a fight . . . that really spoke volumes, didn’t it? ‘You’re great with your tongue, you know?” He smirked upon seeing Zamasu’s cheeks turn a bit darker. He was thankful he could see something like that in this light. 

“I love you, Zamasu.” Vegetto tore his gaze away and instead took hold of one of Zamasu’s hands. He kissed the back and then the palm before trailing a line of kisses to the bend of his elbow. So soft and flawless. “My perfect Zamasu.” He buried his nose in the bend for a moment before kissing it yet again and moving back up to his hand. Zamasu had faltered a bit in his work, but did not stop. “If I wasn’t so eager to have sex with you, I really would make good on that promise to kiss every inch of your body. But hey, I can honestly say I can do that next time. There will a next time and a time after that and a time after that . . . whenever we want.”

He slowly pulled his fingers out of Zamasu’s mouth, marveling at the thick string of saliva that connected the god’s lips to his fingers for a moment. “Wow, you really got them nice and wet, didn’t you?” He offered his lover a grin and received only an embarrassed huff in return. Zamasu’s desperation to not seem completely vulgar was really cute in a way. He’d eventually give in to the pleasure and let himself go, just as he always did. Would he be more open to it all in the future?

“Heh, you talk a big game, but it’s so easy to get you flustered all over again, Zamasu.”

“You say I talk too much, yet it is you who cannot keep your mouth shut.” The Kai glared at his lover, but it was weak and short-lived. “You’re an idiot.”

“An idiot that you get see allllll the time!” Vegetto released his hold on Zamasu’s arm and trailed a string of kisses down the center of his chest until he was low enough on his body that he could reach his ass with the prepped hand. “Even though it hasn’t felt like a very long for me, my body is really eager to make love to you again. Maybe I’m addicted.” He looked up at the god’s face, a mischievous smirk now playing on his lips as he rubbed a slickened digit against Zamasu’s entrance before pressing it inside.

Zamasu gasped softly from the intrusion, then again as the other finger slipped inside. It had been a long while. He’d be lying if he said he hadn’t touched himself and made himself cum many nights while Vegetto was gone. This body had long since been corrupted by the vulgar ways of the mortals and now craved that touch and that release. Still, it was far better to feel the hands and mouth of another on his skin . . . and now to feel something inside of him again. “Vegetto . . .” He wanted to tell him how much he’d missed it, but it was just too embarrassing. Vegetto already knew, didn’t he?

“You like that?” Vegetto dipped his tongue into Zamasu’s navel and then kissed just below it. “I love when you say my name like that. I can tell you want to say a lot more, but you’re too damn stubborn. You should let me know whenever you like something; haven’t I told you that so many times before?” He kissed further down Zamasu’s stomach and then abdomen, the two fingers inside of him moving slowly and in a scissoring motion to open him up a bit. Even if Zamasu didn’t feel pain, he knew he at least felt the discomfort. Plus this would make it easier for him to push inside.

“Why do I need to tell you what you already know? It is inefficient.” Zamasu pursed his lips, his toes curling a bit in response to the fingers moving inside of him. 

“Inefficient? You mean embarrassing, Mr. God?” Vegetto had gone so far down now that he was on his knees at the very end of the bed between Zamasu’s legs.

“What are you doing?” Zamasu propped himself up with his elbows, his voice quivering a bit from Vegetto’s hand still at work. 

“Nothing.” Vegetto grinned and leaned down to lick at the head of Zamasu’s neglected length while maintaining eye contact with the god.

“Haa!” Zamasu’s hips instinctively jerked, causing Vegetto to laugh, “Do not laugh at me. What are you doing!?” His arms had nearly given out from the sudden wave of pleasure. How long had it been since he’d felt such a thing? Since before he fused, right?

“I haven’t done this for you yet, right? You’ve done it for me both times, so . . . I thought maybe I could do you a favor for a change.” He’d never done anything like this before, but it shouldn’t be too difficult considering he’d had it done to him. In this body, in Vegeta’s body, in Kakarot’s body . . . he ought to be able to please Zamasu well enough.

“You have not, but . . .”

“But what?” Vegetto licked at the head again, eliciting a pleasured gasp from his lover, “It feels good, right? I want to make you feel good, just as you’ve done for me.” It would be difficult for him to maintain composure while pleasing Zamasu, but it would be worth it. If he could make Zamasu get loud and writhe on the bed with pleasure, then it would be well-worth his own sexual frustration. Just the thought of turning Zamasu into a desperate mess made his own cock twitch in anticipation.

“. . .” Zamasu curled his fingers anxiously against the sheets as he stared down at Vegetto. Black and Zamasu had done this many times, but to think about a real mortal’s mouth wrapped around him so intimately . . . but it was _Vegetto_. Vegetto was not just any mortal – he needed to train his mind to stop thinking about him as such. As muddled as his thoughts were, his body very much craved the attention. 

Vegetto was waiting for an answer, but only received a blank stare in response. Zamasu was probably thinking about everything way too much again. Without another word, Vegetto wrapped his lips around the head of Zamasu’s length and set into a slow rhythm, his fingers still moving slowly in and out of the Kai to prep him as he pleased him. He made sure to keep his eyes glued to Zamasu’s face – he wanted to see every change in his expression and every twitch and jerk of his body.

He was rewarded quickly. Zamasu gasped sharply the moment he’d felt that wet heat envelope him. He’d tried to thrust up on instinct, but Vegetto quickly moved his free arm to hold his hips down on the bed. “Ha-ahh . . .” It had been quite some time since he’d felt this sensation. Vegetto had not done this before, right? Yet it still felt so good. The pace was slow, but it would be too embarrassing to tell him to move faster. 

That was more like it. The way those soft sounds left the Kai’s lips made the Saiyan huff a small laugh around the mouthful. He could never imagine doing something like this for anyone else, but it was fine since it was Zamasu. Zamasu was powerful, yet so elegant. It was fun to call him beautiful and watch him blush even though he called himself beautiful so many times before. He knew it, and yet he was embarrassed to hear it – it was cute. 

Zamasu’s lips were parted, only closing when he had to swallow hard to keep himself from drooling. It felt so nice and just staring into those brown eyes that were watching him felt hypnotic. What was he watching for? What did he want to see? It was awkward to think about, but something about it made him shiver with pleasure. “Vegetto . . .” He practically whined the name as he tugged at the bedsheets beneath him, his fingers twisting and pulling at the fabric as he struggled to hold himself up with shaking arms. 

“Hmmm?” Vegetto was only able to mutter the muffled question around the length in his mouth. He could have pulled away to speak, but he didn’t really want to talk right now. He wanted to see Zamasu once he finally let go of his pride and let out that raw and perfect emotion. Zamasu was always gorgeous, but he was best when he allowed his walls to come down.

Vegetto hesitantly removed the arm from Zamasu’s hips so he could wrap his free hand around the base of Zamasu’s length. He couldn’t deep-throat him like Zamasu could do (it was clear that the god had quite a lot of experience with this sort of thing), so this would have to suffice, though he only managed to pump his hand a few times before he heard a loud moan from the god. He watch as Zamasu’s arms slid out from beneath him and his back fell to the bed, his knees up in the air as his toes curled against the sheets. Zamasu’s hands buried themselves in Vegetto’s hair, lightly tugging at it as though to make him stop what he was doing.

“Too much?” Vegetto had pulled his mouth away and stopped moving his hand. “And I was only just getting started. It would be bad if you finished really fast, though.” He smiled up at the god as he pulled the digits out of him. His face was really damn cute. The way his eyes were wide and his thin, white brows were furrowed with worry. “Your hands feel nice in my hair. You should put them there more often.” He’d be able to feel those kinds of things whenever he wanted now. 

“You say such vulgar things and then such sweet things with nearly the same breath. That is surely a mortal trait.” Black had often done the same thing and now he found himself thinking such obscene thoughts so often. 

Zamasu loosened his grip on Vegetto’s hair and instead ran his fingers through it. Saiyan hair was so strange and now he, too, had that wild mane. “I will touch you as often as you’d like.”

“Oh?” Vegetto grinned, reaching up to take one hand out of his hair so he could kiss the palm, “Will you touch me _anywhere_ I want as well?” Chuckling, Vegetto removed the fingers from inside Zamasu and wiped them dry on the bedsheet before he moved back up the bed so he was once more on top of Zamasu. The god was blushing even more fiercely than he had been before. “I wonder if there will come a day when my perverted comments don’t make you blush as much.” He lightly nuzzled Zamasu’s cheek as he finally positioned the head of his own length at the god’s entrance.

“I’m sure if such a day should ever come, you will think of-ahhh!” Zamasu shuddered as he felt Vegetto suddenly press inside, his eyes widening as his hands quickly gripped Vegetto’s upper arms.

“Heh, what was that? Didn’t mean to interrupt you.” Vegetto kissed Zamasu’s ear before whispering into it, “Hey, wrap your legs around my waist. I want a good angle.” He was still waiting to move while Zamasu’s body adjusted to the intrusion. His cock was practically throbbing with the desire to move, but he did his best to push his eagerness aside. There was no need to rush anything this time.

“Wrap my legs around you? You said something like that when I first allowed you to defile me, didn’t you?” He did comply, though and wrapped his legs up around the Saiyan’s waist, his legs crossing at the ankles. He couldn’t help but reflect on that initial encounter. Back then, against the outside wall of the cabin . . . it had all begun with him allowing such obscene activities. If he had never allowed Vegetto to touch him and to do such things to him, what would be different now?

“Oh yeah, I guess I did do something like that, didn’t I? Though . . .” He licked the shell of Zamasu’s ear, drawing a low groan from him, “I think carrying you and having sex with you are two very different things, don’t you?”

Vegetto’s heart was pounding hard in his chest and he had to force himself to take it slower this time. Would the slower pace drive Zamasu crazy? He almost wanted it to. “Did your body miss this, Zamasu?” He practically purred the words in his lover’s ear as he slowly moved his hips back so only the head remained inside, then thrust forward again. Slow, steady, deep strokes. “It feels like your whole body is shaking.”

“Hush, you’re a nuisance.” Zamasu tried to turn his head to take his ear away from Vegetto’s lips, but a large hand on his opposite cheek stopped him from moving. 

“Hey, don’t run off. Your ears are some of your erogenous zones, right?” The Saiyan chuckled as he slid the hand on Zamasu’s cheek up into the god’s hair instead. It was already quite disheveled from sleeping not long ago. It was almost poetic to see a perfect and pristine god look so out of sorts. “Ugh . . . I wish I had the stamina to go at it for hours.”

Zamasu huffed, his cheeks burning so much it felt as though they might really be on fire, “Hush, Vegetto.” Why did he have to keep saying such horribly obscene things? “You really will never be satisfied with any amount of time, will you?” It was almost endearing in a way, though. He was so vulgar and blunt and ignorant that it was . . . cute? Was that an appropriate word for it?

“I won’t. With such a delicious meal in front of me, I wish I could eat it forever!” With this proclamation, Vegetto grabbed a handful of Zamasu’s hair and pulled his head back against the pillow to expose his throat. He then buried his face into his neck, biting at the skin hard enough to break it. 

“Nnn-ahhhh. . .” Zamasu’s voice was loud and it quivered with pleasure. Vegetto was not generally one to play around with his immortality, so it was a nice change of pace. “D-don’t do that . . .”

“So that means keep doing it, right? Your voice is telling me to keep going. If you keep making sounds like that, you’ll seriously drive me crazy.” Vegetto ran his tongue over the same spot, but of course there wasn’t any wound to be seen. “Want me to bite you again, Zamasu?”

“N-no . . .”

“Are you sure?” Vegetto jerked his hips forward hard, drawing a long and loud moan from his lover. “That voice is amazing. I love it. I love _you_.” He nuzzled that same spot on Zamasu’s neck, the hand in the god’s hair loosening its grip. He didn’t want to be _too_ rough with him. Someday, though . . .

“I love you, Vegetto.” Zamasu squirmed a bit beneath the Saiyan. The way their bodies moved together as the larger man rolled his hips to thrust in and out of him felt so damn erotic. He could feel the sweat beginning to form between them and at this point he wasn’t sure if the powerful pulse he felt belonged to his own heart or Vegetto’s . . . or perhaps they were beating together. “Move faster.”

Vegetto nearly faltered in his movements, “You already want me to speed up? I kind of wanted to take it slow this time, but . . . I don’t know if I’ve got the patience.” He bit down on the god’s neck once more, relishing in the long, guttural moan Zamasu let out while those perfect hands grabbed at his hair and his face. He fucking loved being bit, didn’t he? “Heh . . . I think you really like things like that. What a naughty Kaioshin you are. I don’t want to hear you scold me for being vulgar ever again, Mr. God.” He continued his slow pace, but did pick it up a bit as he leaned his head back enough to look at a very flustered and flushed Zamasu. His skin glistened even more in the moonlight now that it had a thin layer of sweat on it. Absolutely mesmerizing. 

“It is because I fused with a mortal. That vulgar body has tainted my mind.” The words were laced with shallow breathing as Zamasu attempted to rock his own hips in time with the Saiyan’s thrusts, “Though . . . heh . . .” Zamasu’s laughing was soft and breathy as he pulled Vegetto’s face down close to his own again, their lips brushing against one another’s as he spoke, “That which is sin when done by a mortal becomes divine when done by a god.” Zamasu stuck out his tongue and ran it over the closed lips of Vegetto, “So, _mortal_ . . . I want you to move _faster_.” It was growing difficult to steady his voice, though did he really need to? Vegetto wanted to hear him, didn’t he? What a pervert. Typical of a mortal. Though . . . to think that such things made Vegetto desire him even more. . .

. . . wanting to be desired by a mortal. How far he’d fallen.

The tongue on his lips paired with the sultry tone of Zamasu’s voice and the mischievous glint in the god’s silver eyes made a chill run down the length of Vegetto’s spine. He drew in a shuddered breath as a smile tugged at his lips, “You really are something, Zamasu. I’d love it if you talked to me like that more often. I’d seriously never be able to leave you alone.”

“Perhaps I do not want you to ever leave me alone.” Zamasu shuddered as he stared into Vegetto’s eyes. The way he was looking at him now had a predatory edge to it and he loved it. That was a look he wanted to see more often. 

“Don’t give me too many ideas. Now that we are together permanently, I’m going to take every opportunity I can to put my hands and my mouth all over you.” Vegetto bit at Zamasu’s lower hip and gave him a particularly hard thrust just to hear him moan and watch his entire body shake with pleasure, “I’ll make love you to on every fucking surface I can find. Not an inch of your will be left untouched by me. Not a spot in our home will be left untainted by our love.” His own words were getting the best of him and his hips moved more erratically than before, moving almost purely on instinct fueled by intense desire.

Vegetto crushed their lips together once more as he got up onto his knees. Zamasu’s legs were still wrapped around him, which caused the Kai’s lower body to lift up off the mattress. That would be a far better angle.

He thrust harder and faster now, allowing his instinct to continue to guide his erratic pace. The two exchanged a slew of sloppy kisses. Teeth biting at lips, tongues entangling themselves, saliva glossing their lips as each buried a hand in the disheveled mane of the other. It was messy, it was passionate, it was noisy. Vegetto could hear the sound of his hips slapping against Zamasu’s ass, but the sounds of Zamasu’s pleasured yelps and moans covered it with each parting of their lips. More . . . he wanted to hear more. To think he could hear this whenever he wanted. It really did feel like a dream, didn’t it?

“Haaahhh . . . you still feel just as tight as the first time. It feels so good inside you. Your body just sucks me in like crazy. Seems like your body missed me a lot more than you want to admit, huh?” He released a breathy laugh as he watched the god attempt to glare at him. It was a failure, of course, as he was clearly too dazed by what was happening. That was fine, though. This sort of talk didn’t warrant a response. All he wanted was to tease him a bit for his own sake. The sound of his moans and whines and heavy breathing were more than enough to satisfy Vegetto.

“Hnn . . . nnn . . .” Zamasu’s mouth opened and closed repeatedly, but only noise escaped him. What sort of dirty things was Vegetto saying to him? He heard some of them and the others were lost as he was too focused on the feeling of Vegetto inside him, the hand in his hair, and the lips that found their way over the skin of his face and neck. “Vege . . . tto . . . ha-ahh . . . more. I need . . .” There wasn’t a sentence at all which he could speak to completion. Surely the Saiyan knew what he meant, though – he had a knack for understanding his fragmented speech during sex.

“Zamasu . . . your voice is beautiful. Get louder and I will give you more like you want.” Vegetto used his free hand to grasp Zamasu’s free hand, clasping them together as he pressed them into the pillow by Zamasu’s head. He was a mess and he was still absolutely fucking perfect. “I want to hear you over everything else. There isn’t anyone here but me. Let me hear you. Let me feel you. You can feel me, can’t you? Inside of you . . . filling you up . . . you love it, don’t you? You missed it, didn’t you?”

Vegetto’s embarrassing words drew a long whine from the god’s lips. Zamasu wanted to scold him for being so vulgar, but he couldn’t find the words. Thinking wasn’t really much of an option at the moment anyhow. Every time he opened his mouth with the intention of speaking, a string of moans and gasps left him instead. Vegetto seemed quite happy with that, though, judging from the smirk that stretched wide across his face. 

“Are you trying to say something, Zamasu?” Vegetto leaned by his ear yet again to drive the god even more wild, “Does it feel so good that you can’t even speak? Thank you for the compliment.” He moaned lowly in the god’s ear, which in turn made Zamasu shudder in response. Did he like that, too? He was turned on by so many things and the fusion warrior was excited to experiment with that in the near future. “I love you so much.” He had to make sure to remind him that this wasn’t just a quick fuck. This wasn’t going to end with Zamasu crying while he hurriedly ran away. This was forever.

“V-Vege-tto . . . I . . . I lo-ah!” Zamasu’s head jerked back and his legs instinctively tightened briefly around Vegetto’s waist. The hand in the Saiyan’s hair also tightened, pulling Vegetto’s head back a bit as well and causing him to stop moving for a moment.

“Ah haha, did I get the spot?” Vegetto reached up to pull Zamasu’s hand out of his hair. He kissed the back of it before now holding both of Zamasu’s hands against the pillow on either side of the god’s head, their fingers intertwined as he started to thrust again. “Think I can hit it again?” He couldn’t help but smile at the beautiful mess beneath him. Zamasu’s skin was practically sparkling with sweat and his body was shaking from pleasure. It was beautiful just how sensitive every bit of his body was. “I want to learn how to please you even more. You think that’s possible?” He kissed Zamasu’s forehead, nose, and chin, before pressing their lips together again.

Please him more? Was there really any way that Vegetto could possibly make him feel any better than he already did? Vegetto made him happy not only in bed, but in general. He thought that only he could make himself happy, that the mortals were the reason for any bit of unhappiness in his life . . . yet Vegetto had proven him quite wrong. Now he was unhappy without him. Just what was it about this mortal that was so special? He really didn’t know if he could be without him again. His body and his heart desired him so desperately.

Zamasu knew it wasn’t a question Vegetto was expecting an answer to, though. Instead, he merely deepened the kiss the Saiyan had initiated, his hand holding tightly to the hands of Vegetto as this time he was the one to lick at the other’s lips. There was a brief moment of hesitation before Vegetto parted his lips and allowed Zamasu’s tongue to slip inside and dance a bit with his own. It should have felt so disgusting to be completely intimate like this. It had not been so long ago when he would have rather died than done this with a mortal. 

“Hnn . . .” He moaned softly against Vegetto’s lips as his own tongue retreated back into his mouth and the kiss was broken. “Vegetto . . .” There was so much he wanted to say, but the feeling of Vegetto inside of him and the way those brown eyes gazed down into his own made his mind draw constant blanks. It was as though his mouth was currently incapable of saying anything other than the name of his lover. 

“I hear you. I know.” Vegetto nuzzled his forehead before shifting a bit to get a better angle with his thrusts. Much like before, the god suddenly arched up against him, his legs tightening and those brilliant silver eyes widening considerably. “Haha, there we go. I love that so much.” Keeping that same angle, he thrust again and then again, trying to keep it strong and steady. With each thrust, Zamasu’s voice grew a bit louder and his hands gripped Vegetto’s hands tighter. “It feels good, right? It feels amazing inside you, too. The way you keep tightening around me is driving me nuts . . .” He’d nearly forgotten about Zamasu’s neglected cock, though.

Vegetto released his hold on one of Zamasu’s hands and spit into his palm so he could reach down between them and stroke Zamasu’s length in time with his thrusting. The moment he touched him, Zamasu’s body jerked as though he’d been struck by something. His eyes even rolled back in his head a bit and something about that erotic expression sent a jolt of pleasure surging through the Saiyan’s body. “Shit . . . you can’t make a face like that, Zamasu. It’s too fucking good.”

As he pumped Zamasu’s cock and continued to thrust into him, he leaned his head down enough that he could run his tongue up along the god’s neck and chin to his lips, where he bit at the lower lip a bit. He didn’t want to kiss him again as that would muffle the lovely moans leaving him. He wanted to hear that gorgeous voice as it cracked from overuse. Would Zamasu be hoarse after that? How sexy would that be to know he was the reason for it? “Fuck, I love you . . . I want every bit of you all the time . . . forever. Give yourself only to me, Zamasu, and I’ll give myself only to you.” He growled the words as he pressed their foreheads together, his eyes locked with the half-lidded, glazed-over eyes of the god beneath him.

Beautiful, messy, perfect, loud, passionate, erratic . . . and they could do this as often as they wanted until the very end.

“Shit!” Vegetto pulled out of Zamasu and quickly forced the god to pull his legs away so he would fall back to the bed. Once he was down, and looking quite dazed and confused, Vegetto took both his own cock and Zamasu’s into one hand, stroking them both together before leaning down and crushing his lips against Zamasu’s once last time as the two of them reached release together. He groaned softly against Zamasu’s lips as he rode the waves of his own orgasm. Zamasu’s body shivered beneath him, his now-freed hands burying themselves in the Saiyan’s hair as the kiss ended.

“Heh . . . ahh . . . that’s better than finishing inside you, right? But . . . but I wanna do that again sometime for sure.” He spoke as he tried to catch his breath, his own arms and legs shaking from exertion before he flopped down on the bed beside Zamasu.

They both lay there for a moment, the room completely silent save for their heavy breathing. Both were on their backs, their arms touching, and they were staring up at the ceiling in the dark. 

It was done. Vegetto had come here and they had sex again. So then that meant . . . that meant . . .

“Hey, can you manifest a rag or something so I can clean u-“

“Don’t go.”

“Huh?”

“Please don’t leave again.” Zamasu rolled onto his side to face Vegetto, ignoring the small bit of cum that had dripped onto his abdomen, “Don’t leave. I really don’t know if I could take that again. I don’t think my mind could-“

“Woah, woah. Zamasu. . . Calm down. I’m permanent, remember? I’m serious about that. I can’t unfuse anymore. I’m not going anywhere without you, okay? You’re stuck with me.” It was a bit difficult to see his face now that he was turned on his side, but with the way his voice quivered he likely looked pitiful right now. “I’m staying right here.”

Staying. Permanent. “A-ah . . . right.” Of course. He knew that. Vegetto had already told him that. Why did it feel like he was about to lose him again, then? “I just . . . it feels like . . . ugh.” Zamasu sighed and placed a hand over his eyes and rolled onto his back again. “I can’t think properly around you.” With the wave of his hand, Zamasu produced a cloth and dropped it onto Vegetto’s stomach without looking at him. 

“You’re used to me leaving afterward, but . . . we’ll change that. Now I’ll be around you all the time and even if you get tired of me, too bad!” Vegetto tried to lighten the suddenly heavy mood as he wiped off his hand and Zamasu’s skin the best he could. He chucked the cloth to the floor with everything else. “Come here.”

“Huh? I’m right here. . .” Zamasu pulled his hand away from his own face and turned his head a bit to look at Vegetto. 

“No, like . . . here.” Vegetto rolled onto his side for a moment and wrapped an arm around Zamasu to pull him up and over so he was now lying face down with his head on the Saiyan’s chest. “Like this. I want to hold you like this. I never got to do this after sex before and . . . and it’s something I really wanted. It’s fine, right?” Would Zamasu hate to be treated this way? He’d been going along with nearly everything thus far, but would this be a bit much for the god’s ego? Though they did lay in this same position briefly when they were outside.

Vegetto was warm and sticky with sweat, but somehow Zamasu didn’t find that repulsive at all. It was Vegetto, so it was fine. He was warm and the god could hear the way his heart was pounding hard in his chest now that his ear was right against it. “I hear your heart.” He wasn’t sure why he bothered to say it, but it felt significant somehow. It had felt significant when he’d heard it earlier in the day as well, but he had been too tired to think much about it. The way Vegetto’s heart pounded in his chest. His own heart. This was not the heart of Son Goku and Vegeta combined – but his own heart. “Does it beat so fast because of me?” Zamasu tilted his head back to look up at Vegetto’s face. 

“Heh . . . well it’s beating really fast right now because we just had sex, but . . . you definitely do make it race a lot.” Vegetto gave him a goofy grin before resting a hand on the god’s waist and using the other to lightly touch his ear and then his cheek. 

“Zamasu . . . when the sun comes up again and we’ve cleaned ourselves up . . . come back to my timeline with me. Come live there with me.” Maybe this wasn’t the best time to bring this up, but would there ever be a perfect time for it?

“Vegetto . . .” Again he was saying this. Even during sex there had been times where he’d implied he would take the god back there. Why? Why leave this perfect world behind? No, he knew why. He knew this world was not truly perfect and yet it was so painful to even consider admitting that. Could he really leave his work behind?

“I already talked it over with Beerus and Whis. They agreed to it as long as you behave yourself. You could do that, couldn’t you?” The hand on Zamasu’s waist tightened its hold a bit, “I can’t live forever in this desolate timeline. Even with you here, this timeline would definitely make me go insane.”

Insane . . . desolate . . . surely that could not be the reason for his own instability . . . could it? “I hate mortals. How could you expect me to go to a timeline where they still exist?” Zamasu rested a hand on Vegetto’s shoulder and slowly slid it down the man’s arm as he admired each and every curve of muscle. “The only mortal I can tolerate is you. You are special.”

“That’s . . . I mean I love hearing that, but . . . but I think you could learn to understand and appreciate mortals for what they are. I want to show you what you missed out on. You gods all live up in that realm, right? It looks sooooo boring there. I can show you all kinds of really fun things! Like . . . like aquariums and gardens and amusement parks! We can even do little romantic things if you want.” Vegetto felt his own face heat up as he conjured up mental images of small picnics in parks and date nights at restaurants. These ideas, of course, came from memories from Kakarot with Chichi and Vegeta with Bulma. “I’m not great with this kind of thing, but we can learn together.”

Vegetto sounded so excited about the prospect of them coexisting. “If I could do such things with no other mortals around, it would be ideal. But I could not tolerate seeing their insolence. The way the mortals ruin their planets with their war and their greed. I gave up my simple life to rid the cosmos of their existence for a reason. I worked quite hard and endured a lot to accomplish this goal and you expect me to simply throw all of that away?” This timeline that Zamasu and Goku Black had created together . . . could he really be expected to abandon such a thing?

“But you accomplished it, so now what? What is left for you here? I asked that before, didn’t I? Now you are the only being left other than the animals. What is left for you? You said it yourself that you were going crazy here, didn’t you? You made the mortal-less existence that you wanted. It will always be here, but . . . but I won’t stay here, so . . .” He didn’t want to force Zamasu to come with him, but he also refused to stay in this depressing place. 

“So if I do not come with you, you will leave me again.” He had to go back to the timeline filled to the brim with mortals . . . or be left alone once more. It really was too good to be true when Vegetto said he was permanent, wasn’t it? Why would he go to a world like that? He knew it was ugly and terrible, so why? Why would Vegetto ask him to do such a thing? “Did you not just earlier say that all you needed was the sun, the moon, and me in order to find happiness?”

“I did say that, but . . . but I can’t have the real you in this place. I think we’d both lose our true selves in this environment. We’d just slowly waste away to insanity. I want the real you. I want a smiling you. I want a you who is happy. If you will not come with me, I would have to leave you and only visit at times. I don’t want to leave you, though. I think . . . I think you’re definitely on the edge of insanity being here. It’s like you said before – if I go and come back, will I still have the same Zamasu?” The hand Vegetto had on Zamasu’s waist now slid up and down his back, his fingers lightly moving along the god’s skin to try and comfort him, “So I want you to come back with me. You can always return here with the time ring if you really hate it that much, can’t you? So . . . what do you have to lose if you go? This timeline will not disappear . . . and you stand to gain a new life that you love. I . . . I really think I can make you happy, even in a world full of mortals.”

It was true that he could always return to this timeline, but . . . “Vegetto . . .” He wanted to stay with him. “This timeline is my ideal.” This timeline was horribly lonely. “This is everything I wanted.” It was what he wanted, before he discovered love between Zamasu and Goku Black. “Leaving would be like throwing it away.” Leaving would feel the same as admitting that this timeline was not everything he’d wanted after all. “I . . .”

“Zamasu . . .” Vegetto wrapped both arms around him now and held him tightly against him, leaning his face down a bit to bury it in that soft, white hair. Would Zamasu really not go with him after all?

“I want to go with you, Vegetto.” The words quietly slipped from his lips as his own hands rested on Vegetto’s shoulders. He closed his eyes and listened to the quick beating of Vegetto’s heart. He wanted this every night. Vegetto did not understand his ideals, nor did he support him, but there was something so endearing about his face and his voice and that stupid smile of his. He would likely never understand what it was that drew him to the Saiyan – it was surely a multitude of things – but he did not want to be without him again.

“So . . . so you’ll go with me after all?” Vegetto’s eyes widened a bit, his arms still tightly wrapped around his lover as he awaited his response. 

“I . . . I will go with you . . . I will, **_but_** . . .” Zamasu opened his eyes once more and yet again tilted his head back to look up at Vegetto. It was a bit easier to see him now as the sun had begun to rise outside and allowed more light to leak into the room. “If I really, truly hate it there . . . I will come back here. I . . . I love you. It is strange to say it, but I love you somehow. Even so, I hate mortals more than I could ever convey to you. I really do hope you can show me a world that I can enjoy, even with mortals crawling all over it. So show me, Vegetto. Show me this wonderful and fun world that you speak of. Show me this world that I could not experience as a Kaioshin.”

“I will! I really will! I’ll show you how to live more like a mortal than a god! You’ll be happier, I swear! I’ll do everything I can to make sure you’re happy, Zamasu!” Vegetto’s heart was beating even faster, this time from excitement. He’d agreed to it! Zamasu would go back with him! “Oh man, I wonder if Bulma can help find us a secluded place to live. Maybe a cabin like this one! Oooh! Or maybe on like a private island!!”

Zamasu watched Vegetto’s face practically light up when he’d given him his answer. The way the Saiyan prattled on with a giant grin on his face made Zamasu’s face feel hot and before he knew it, the corners of his own lips had turned upward into a small smile. Vegetto was so damn happy while planning on how they’d live together.

Live together . . . with a mortal. A powerful mortal. So powerful, he could surely face off with a god of destruction. Was he not akin to a god himself, then? Surely he could become a god of destruction one day if he wanted. Wouldn’t that be something?

“Oh but you’ll have to do all the cooking, ‘cause I probably can’t do it . . . you could teach me, though! And we can train together, too! Oh man! That’s going to be great! We might destroy cities, though, so we’ll have to-“

“Vegetto.”

“Hm?” Those big brown eyes looked down at him and the sun now shining through the blinds caught them just right. Those beautiful, shimmering brown eyes. He really did look best when bathed in sunlight, didn’t he? 

“I . . . I look forward to what you will show me in this new life.” A new timeline, a new life, a new lover, a new companion . . . a new future.

Grinning, Vegetto rolled onto his side and began showering the god’s face with quick kisses, “I’ll show you so much! Just you wait, Zamasu!!”

* * *

The sun seemed far brighter than it ever had since he’d arrived on this planet. Zamasu followed Vegetto out of the cabin and watched as he tossed the capsule out and released the familiar time machine. Just seeing that and knowing what it meant made his heart beat faster and his breathing grow shallow. Would he really leave behind all of his work? Would he really leave . . . this cabin which belonged to Zamasu and Goku Black?

Zamasu glanced back over his shoulder at it. It wasn’t as though the building itself ought to really mean anything to him. It was built by mortals and had belonged to them. The time spent here was quite short, but . . . there were wonderful memories created between those walls. 

“Zamasu, are you ready to go?” Vegetto stood by the time machine, waiting as Zamasu looked back at the placed he’d called home for over a year now. Was he having second thoughts?

“A-ah . . . yes . . .” He turned his attention back to Vegetto and then glanced down at the blue sash tied around his waist. He decided he preferred it over the red after all. Sure it did not match anything else he wore, but he simply could not bring himself to part with it. This sash had brought him more comfort than the cabin did. 

Vegetto brought him more comfort than those memories did.

“I am ready, Vegetto. We can go.” He briskly went to where Vegetto was waiting and was startled as the Saiyan scooped him up into his arms and flew up and into the time machine. 

“I’m so excited to bring you back with me! I hope . . . I hope someday you can get along with everyone!” Vegetto sat Zamasu on his lap as he took the seat for himself and closed the hatch on the machine. “I love you so much. Are you nervous? I’m . . . nervous, but also really excited! I’m really, _really_ excited!” Vegetto smiled just as he always did and something about that smile eased the god’s worries a bit. 

Zamasu did not say anything, but he did offer Vegetto a very soft smile in return before glancing outside of the time machine again. Vegetto had so many grand ideas for their future. And . . . and he wondered if maybe someday he could marry Zamasu just as Vegeta had married Bulma and Kakarot had married Chichi. Only time would tell if that was in the cards for them.

As the time machine rose toward the sky, Zamasu glanced down at the cabin one last time, at his perfect world one last time. He was leaving all of this behind because of his attachment to one mortal. One mortal who was powerful. One mortal who was handsome. One mortal who was kind. One mortal who had managed to get such a tight grip on his heart. One mortal who was . . . worthy.

“Alright, here we go. No regrets, Zamasu.” Vegetto swallowed a lump in his throat as he double-checked everything Bulma told him to check. 

“No, no regrets. I have everything that I need right here.” Zamasu smiled again, though much more brilliantly than before, and as the machine reached the peak of its height, the god leaned the short distance down to Vegetto and captured his lips just as the time machine warped away.

Toward a new tomorrow . . . toward a truly perfect utopia.

**Author's Note:**

> That’s it! That’s the series! Thank you to all who read all three parts. I hope the ending was satisfying to you! Please let me know what you thought of it!


End file.
